All Alone
by OneWingedSeer
Summary: He is the only one left. The only fighter on this side of his dying world. An AU story that starts with Trunks right before he leaves for the future. The AU part of it starts in Chapter 3. A bit of an epic, but a good read overall.
1. The Promise

**The usual disclaimer. JIC. I don't own Dragonball Z or anything related.**

_A little explanation if you want it:_

_Since Future Trunks is the character I most relate to, I'm trying to write an AU from his point of view. The first few chapters don't diverge from the original version and later on there are parts that still are canon, since I am gradually bringing in the deviations._

All alone.

He looked around, perched upon the crumbling remnants of a shattered building.

Sometimes, when he was a kid, there were times that being alone was all he had wished for. Back when he had dreamed of having adventures all on his own. Rescuing people, being needed, becoming the hero who always saved the day…

Trunks clenched his fists a little tighter, listening to the night for any signs of movement, any sign that there was anything left on this earth other than himself. No sign of anything. Just one lone hero, surveying the lands he had failed to keep safe.

All those lives lost without reason. Yes, he had gotten his chance to be the hero that everyone had depended on, the hero that was supposed to save the day. His eyes narrowed from self pity as he thought, "How utterly naïve I was as a child. Well, I sure got my wish."

The stars reflected in Trunks' pale eyes as he turned to face the skies. A slight breeze ruffled thin lilac strands of hair across his furrowed forehead.

Yet, nothing could be done about the events that had taken place. This was his world, as bad as it was. And while there was not much left, he was still needed.

Trunks nimbly leapt off the crumbling concrete, feeling the wind whip his jacket as he let his body free fall. How tempting it was to simply not use his Ki. To not fly. To just fall and not have to fight anymore.

At the last second, Trunks slowed his progress, landing silently on the broken pavement. He looked up at the sky again, thinking, "But as long as there is still even one person's life that I can save, I will continue to fight."

Trunks began the slow walk back to the old Capsule Corporation building, allowing himself time to think, a luxury he did not allow himself often enough. He glanced from side to side, trying to imagine colors in this dreary world, trying to see what _had_ been there once upon a time. It was so close, that image of a better life.

He shook his head violently. "No. You've got to stop thinking like that, Trunks," he whispered to himself. "Some desires are too dangerous to entertain."

The soft sound of Trunks' sneakers sped up slightly, only to slow back down after a few moments of silence.

_That_ was one of the things he missed the most… Another sound. The sound of another voice, one that was not his own. One that listened as much as he talked… _Gohan…_

The footsteps died away entirely, creating an all consuming void of silence where no living thing moved. A knot moved up his throat, as the tide of guilt rose to devour Trunks whole. It was always his fault. No matter how hard he tried, he was always too late.

Even in the time that had mattered most. If only he had been able to transform into a Super Saiyan, even just those few hours sooner. If only he had dodged Gohan's crippling blow. If only he could have been there.

Trunks was close enough to see the CC building now. He had to go in and see his mother. He knew she worried about him every time he left the house and Trunks couldn't really blame her.

If only there was someone else to help. Another Super Saiyan or someone who could fight. If only Gohan and him could have beat the androids together. But now, once again, no matter how Trunks tried he could not gain any ground in improving his future.

Gohan had always been there to tell Trunks that he was strong…

Now, three years after Gohan's death, Trunks finally knew what the word really meant. Funny, as soon as someone stopped reminding him of his strength, he had truly become strong.

Trunks gave a little smile and continued walking. It wasn't amusing, really, just ironic. And anything that made Trunks even think of smiling, he indulged; otherwise, he would have long forgotten what a smile was. Just as he had forgotten laughter. Any laughter besides the loud mirth of the androids as they destroyed and taunted their victims.

Yes, that was the only laughter left to this world. The glee of those destroyers.

Trunks felt his hair rising, the rocks around him floating with unseen power. Lightning crackled from his worn down sneakers across the yard, cracking through the air like hundreds of whips.

"No," Trunks growled, feeling the call to fight rise within him. "Not yet. Not while there is still something to fight for."

It took every ounce of self-control Trunks possessed to calm the fury within his heart, but nothing could calm the fire in his mind. "I have to change this. I have to make this better," he whispered fiercely unto the night. "I won't be weak any more. I will save this world."

And with the will power to change the world blazing from his blue eyes, Trunks approached his scarcely lit home. With one last glace at the stars, Trunks sent out into the night one last call. "I won't let anyone else down. I will save them as I couldn't save you. I promise you this, Gohan…"


	2. It's Ready

When he entered the house, Trunks' mother raised her head from where it rested on her folded arms. The table was still littered with the evidence of yet another untouched meal, the pot still being kept warm on the stove as it had been hours before.

As usual, Trunk's mother looked almost surprised to see her son really walk through the door way alive. It showed in the tentative nature of her whisper. "…Trunks?"

He gave her a small smile and wave as he approached the table. "Yeah. I'm all right, Mom."

One of her long, teal locks fell across her startling blue eyes as she quickly stood up.

Trunks grimaced and braced himself for the worst, shoulders tensing preemptively. He had needed some time out in the night to deal with his emotions… and had once again forgotten to tell his mother before disappearing. She hated when he did that and sometimes Trunks thought he'd never hear the end of it.

But the reprimand never came. Instead, his mother gave a thumbs-up and an almost cheery wink to her son, stunning him completely. Putting both fists on her hips, Bulma announced, "Who's the smartest Mom in the world, son? It's almost had to believe I can even surpass myself anymore with my perfect brilliance of mind. But there you have it, your Mom's a genius."

It took a moment for Trunks to recover from the emotional whiplash of expecting one thing and getting entirely another thing. But when he had, Trunks understood what she meant. "You mean it's done? Does it work?"

She brushed back the stray lock of hair and replied, "You impressed? Yeah, it's done. But I mean we won't really know until we test it out if it really works." She shrugged her shoulders and chuckled, "But if you are anything at all like Vegeta or Goku, then the fact that you will be the first to test it out won't deter you in the slightest. And now that you have four functional limbs, I can't stop you."

Trunks was already on his way to the workroom, heart pounding with an emotion he could not describe. "The Time Machine," Trunks whispered to himself. "I'm really going to do it."

There it was; all golden metal and gleaming engines. Wires surrounded the machine where Trunks' mom had just today unplugged and dropped them.

Trunks reached out on hand, resting it on the cool metal of the ship as if it were the shoulder of a close friend.

"It's ready whenever you are ready to go, Trunks," Bulma's voice came from the entry to the workroom.

Trunks turned his blue eyes towards her and nodded, hand falling slowly from the machine. "I think in the morning would be best. There is still time to make sure this is all planned out right."

Trunks' mom shook her head, saying, "You know. I don't know sometimes where you got your analytical side from."

They began walking back down to the kitchen again as she spoke, "I mean, I know I am smart and so was Vegeta, but let's be honest. Neither of us really planned things out to say the least. That man would jump into anything that so much as whispered of danger and I didn't learn to slow down until well after Goku died."

Steam issued slowly from the stove as Trunks grabbed two bowls from the table. "Mom," he said.

Bulma sat down and nodded for her son to continue.

"Tell me what Goku was like again," Trunks requested. Even as he said it, he blushed, wishing he had not asked. It was childish. Weakness he could not afford in this world. After all, he was a grown man. He could not afford the luxury of listening to stories of heroes and hope…

Trunks grabbed a spoon and muttered a quick, "Nevermind," handing his mother her portion of soup.

She smiled all too knowingly and spoke to her bowl as if it were the one who secretly wanted to hear about Goku. "He was amazing, you know. So very strong and yet, in some ways he never changed from that pure-hearted boy I first met in the woods." Her voice grew strong just from the memory, Trunks could hear it. "Goku always knew what to do, he never gave up and somehow it always seemed he could make everything all right. Nothing could get him down, even when things seemed beyond all hope."

"…hope…" Trunks echoed, eyes downcast. What a thing that would be. The last hope that Trunks could remember really having was when he was with Gohan on that last day together. It was a good feeling and Trunks fought to relive it, feeling a little glow inside his heart. And to think, Goku had that feeling around him all of the time.

"Goku was a true hero. The fighter with a ready laugh and the ability to beat anything he set his mind to," Trunks' mother continued.

Trunks smiled, imagining the person his mother spoke of as a version of Gohan without all the pain and suffering. Like a Gohan who still knew how to laugh and smile. With that thought, he turned around and asked, "And younger Gohan? I'll be seeing him when he's about…six years old." Trunks almost laughed at the thought. "Mom, what was he like back then?"

Bulma swallowed some soup and said, "You'll just have to find that out, now won't you?"

Suddenly entirely serious, Trunks nodded and looked out of the window at the night sky. Tomorrow could not come soon enough. It was time to change things. "Yes, I will."


	3. Hope

It was hard to sleep. No. Impossible to sleep.

Trunks wasn't sure which was worse: the nightmares that haunted him of this world or the dreams that tore at his will to go on. The dreams of a better world. A world in which he was not alone.

Morning came and Trunks went to the kitchen where his mother sat, looking into a glass of mint tea. The smell was refreshing, like a reminder of the things that once grew freely on Earth.

Upon seeing her son, Bulma stood up, smiling. "Here," she said, handing him a lumpy bag. "I don't want you looking like that when you meet everyone for the first time, so I made you some new clothes."

Trunks opened the bag. "Mom, you didn't have to. I'm fine in my usual clothes."

"Nonsense, you silly goose. Go get changed. I've worked too hard on those clothes for you to just toss them aside now." Trunks' mom held up one finger. "I'll meet you out by the time machine when you're done, okay?"

There was simply no point in arguing with her, so five minutes later Trunks walked out in the newly sewn outfit, sword slung over his shoulder.

"Gosh, you don't know how proud I am of you for doing this. You look so handsome, Trunks Brief," Bulma said, poking the fresh, blue jacket on the CC patch. Trunks smiled, blue eyes gaining some of the light they had lost four years ago. His mother knew that look well. "I am going to miss you, son."

Trunks looked at the side of the yellow ship where his mother had scribbled one word in black marker: "Hope!!!"

He smiled. "Is that what I'm bringing to the past? Hope?" he said, looking back at his mother.

If it all worked out, then there would be plenty of hope to go around. It had to work out. It just had to. "I guess this is the antidote for Goku?"

Bulma handed over a small capsule filled with purple liquid. "Yeah, do me a favor. Don't drop it," his mother said with a slight wobble in her voice.

Trunks frowned. "What is it, Mom?"

Bulma looked lost for words. "I wrote hope also because…" Tears started streaming down her face. "Because, I'd like you to bring some back to me, Trunks. If you can."

He understood how much it must hurt. Unlike Trunks, Bulma knew how much this world had lost with the coming of the androids. Her son had only ever known this hopeless, colorless life. How it must be for her to have memories of that other world, but still be unable to bring it back.

With a curt nod, Trunks said, "Right. Stay out of trouble while I'm gone."

Bulma wiped away the tears. There would be plenty of time for that later. "Sure. You know me."

Trunks took one precise leap into the cockpit and chuckled, "Yeah. That's why I'm worried."

Voice rising over the engine, his mother yelled, "Trunks. I want you back."

Something in the way he could not seem to answer back worried Trunks. It was as if he could not promise to bring his mother back the hope she wanted. Instead, he called, "I love you."

And as a last farewell, Bulma waved upward at the quickly rising ship and yelled, "I love you, too, Trunks!"


	4. Arrival in the Past

The engine whirred faster, making the whole cockpit rattle.

"This is it," Trunks whispered as he manipulated the controls with natural ease.

The light outside grew in intensity as the whirring engine reached a peak of sound that could be felt rather than heard. Strands of lavender hair floated towards the ceiling with a life of their own in the rapidly shifting gravity. Trunks grimaced. Although he had been warned about it, the sensation of gravity swiftly shifting between all three hundred and sixty degrees was discomforting to say the least.

The light from the sun grew and surrounded him, spinning in the same motions as the swirling gravity. Trunks pushed one final switch and was filled with light himself, traveling to the past in an instant.

The ship reappeared above the desert coordinates Trunks had plotted into the database. With a sigh, he slumped back in his seat, collapsing into normal gravity with relief. "Well, it actually worked, Mom. Guess you are a genius after all," Trunks actually laughed a little. A sound that he had not attempted to make in at least four years. It seemed the air here held a life in it that Trunks' world had long ago lost. _Maybe this is hope…_

The machine's auto pilot landed smoothly in a small cloud of dust upon the rocks and the engine slowed down once again until silence pervaded.

Trunks studied his navigation watch and checked for the arrival times of the two people he was anxious to meet. "Good," Trunks muttered to himself. "It looks like I have twenty minutes until Frieza and his father arrive. And then about two and a half hours after that for Goku."

He reached over to pull the cockpit release and was hit with a sudden thought that he had not even considered before now.

Back at the house, Trunks had planned and planned for the best time and place to give Goku the antidote. It was as he was reading through history books that he stumbled across the arrival of Frieza and his father, King Cold. According to the records written by his mother, Frieza had been so mad at his defeat by Goku on Namek that he came to Earth to get revenge.

Gohan had been captured by Frieza's henchmen. He had only been six years old when he was brought before Frieza for torture. Trunks clenched his fists. That had been where Gohan had gotten the permanent scars on his face. Frieza had used a cutting blade attack and was able to get Gohan several times before Goku arrived to save him.

"Well, not this time, Frieza," Trunks vowed, voicing the thought that had just come to him. "Because in this world, for the first time of my life…I can defeat my demons." Launching out of the capsule, Trunks landed lightly on one knee and his fingers, eyes burning in a distinctly Saiyan manner. "And I'm gonna start with you, Frieza."

Trunks stowed the Time Machine in its capsule and sat on the rocky earth to wait. He closed his eyes, feeling with his senses something that he had never felt in such magnitude before. It took him a moment to understand, but once he did, Trunks smiled.

It was life. There was so much life on Earth at this time that Trunks was nearly overwhelmed with the pure joy of it. This place was like a dream. And he hadn't even met Goku yet.

Trunks sat there, soaking it all in, enjoying himself so much that it was hard to feel anything but happiness, even as he felt the dark forms of Frieza and King Cold arriving on Earth. With a stretch and a yawn, he got up and hooked his thumbs in his pants pockets, slowly making his way over to the others' spaceship.

Trunks had always wondered what Frieza looked like. According to his mother, this being had been the one to hold Trunks' father captive for most of his life and was partially responsible for Vegeta's evil side all those years.

There he was. The smaller, half-white one must be Frieza with the electricity of excitement crackling around him. It was sickening. Frieza laughed, an awful, raspy laugh and Trunks was momentarily transported through memories of his own world. _The cold laughter of those monsters…The fire…The screaming people I couldn't save._

"Now, all of you," Frieza yelled at his men. "Begin your search."

Trunks' eyes narrowed. _Not today, Frieza._

"And when you find them," the voice rasped out with a laugh. "Show them no mercy!"

The crowd of followers chorused, "Yes sir," and half of them rose from the ground.

Trunks launched himself high into the air, wind whipping his Capsule Corp jacket like a banner. In one swift movement his sword was out and cutting formations through the air with complete ease. The clunkies never knew what hit them as their bodies tumbled to the ground in pieces.

Already, history was altered for the better. This future would not see a Gohan who could not smile. This world would see a happier mentor, one who could laugh without memories of childhood torture.

Trunks' sneakers touched lightly on the ground and he sheathed the sword once more, blue eyes boring into the eyes of his father's oldest enemy.

"Ah. So you must be Frieza," Trunks said, trying not to smile.

_I don't have to run anymore,_ he thought. _I can save those I love in this world. Maybe this is what hope feels like…_

"I'm going to destroy you."


	5. Power to Win

He could feel it. The almost overwhelming feeling, not quite joy, yet not quite determination. It was there in the air as he cut down the foot soldiers. It was as palpable and untouchable as the sun as he bantered with Frieza.

It was the strength to change destiny.

Trunks smiled, loving the feeling of power flow through him after an entire life of helplessness. It had been worth it to come to the past, even if just for this moment.

Looking over at Frieza and King Cold, he said, "I'm going to let you two in on a little secret." The two monsters looked up, intrigued despite themselves.

"You're gonna find out what it's like to fight a _real_ Super Saiyan." Trunks smiled, predicting their thoughts and responding, "And I'm not talking about Goku."

Frieza laughed. An insignificant sound to Trunks' ears. The rage began to flow through him, rocks rising with unseen power.

_Too late, Frieza,_ Trunks' thought to himself as he saw the recognition in those beady, red eyes. Trunks yelled with pent up rage at all the death from his own world, letting it all out into this time of light and joy.

_Remember the children. Remember how you felt that day, Trunks. Let it go. Let it all go._He could hear Gohan's voice coaching him in a past long gone. That calm, serious voice of the only one Trunks had ever loved. It wasn't fair. No more.

He felt the straightening of glowing locks as the transformation neared its end. Rocks and bodies fell back to the earth with the same dead weight and Trunks looked up into the terrified eyes of the "Supreme Power of the Universe."

_Oh, how little they knew about power back then._

Trunks smirked. "What? Was it something I said?"

Frieza shrieked. _Well, at least one of them has some idea of what they're both up against now. Not that it does them any good,_ Trunks thought as he took the force of the first attack head on.

It shocked him slightly, but the minuscule pain was more than worth it to see Frieza's look of complete horror as Trunks did not flinch away.

Every move Frieza had was no match for a Super Saiyan. Even a freshly transformed Super Saiyan like Goku had been would have only had minimal difficulties with a terrified weakling such as this.

_Goku…_ Trunks thought about him. He would be on his way now, just over two hours depending on how fast he was going. How would it be to meet the very first Super Saiyan…Gohan's father…

Trunks had heard so many wonderful stories, and Goku always seemed like the grand hero of whatever fairy tale he was in. Even when the ever serious Gohan spoke of his father, it was in that same tone.

_What would he really be like though?_Trunks lifted his hand to lazily catch the super nova Frieza had created. _And can I really trust him?_ He walked up out of the crater, taunting more out of habit now than any real need. "Is this yours?"

_I know that my Mom and Gohan say he's wonderful, but memories morph. What if he isn't the man that they always made him out to be?_ Frieza screamed and detonated his own bomb which Trunks let wash over him like water. _What if he tells the others who I am and in this time, I am never born?_

There was only one way to find out. Trunks had given Frieza more than enough chances to destroy him and now, "It's my turn."

He sliced through his father's oldest enemy with the same ease he had cut through his henchmen, blowing the pieces to nothingness with a single blast from one hand.

Trunks sighed, sliding the sword back into its sheath. That was done. He landed and looked at King Cold, walking forward purposefully and watching the other shiver with suppressed fear. _One more left,_ Trunks found himself whispering as clouds of dust rose from his sneakers.


	6. Meeting the Z Fighters

_There._ Trunks looked up into the sky, catching hold of the power level he had just sensed like a scent from a not quite forgotten past.

He took minimal notice of King Cold, feeling the slightest twinges of guilt at how merciless he had become over the years. Being able to kill was one thing, but being able to kill while his mind was somewhere else entirely…

_It WAS him._ Trunks fired an energy blast and the lifeless corpse of King Cold dropped to the ground. _And he was coming closer. With all the others._ Trunks sheathed his sword. _Gohan…You're really here._

A true smile lit up the periwinkle depths of Trunks eyes as his hair fell, once again its lavender hue.

Somehow, it was hard to believe, even as he knew that Gohan would have to be alive in this time. After all these years of telling himself that Gohan was gone forever, he could hardly believe it.

_If I were smart, I'd run away now so that none of them can find out who I am._ Trunks laughed to himself. _Oh well, who said I had to be smart all the time, anyway._ Shrugging, he called out to the new comers and said, "I'm heading off to a place near here to meet Goku. Would you guys like to come?"

The group of Z fighters froze, as did Trunks. _There he is._ Trunks' blue eyes widened as he saw Gohan for the first time in four long years. He looked so funny, and half wild with his long black hair grown out. The skin of his face was unscarred and smooth, but those eyes…

Trunks looked into the black eyes of his former master, into the trustworthiness and innocence there. _It really is him._

"What? How weird. How does he know about my Father?" Gohan asked and Trunks fought the urge to laugh out loud. It was so amazing to hear that voice of a little kid, so much like his adult voice and yet, so comically juxtaposed.

Gohan turned his round face from Krillin back to Trunks, surveying him curiously.

Trunks read the dark eyes and nodded once, knowing that this little Gohan would trust him as his older counterpart had. He laughed, "Hey. Follow me. Don't worry, I won't bite. This way!"

Trunks turned around and flew off to Goku's soon to be landing site, knowing that the little part-Saiyan would come and with him the others would follow him.

It seemed as though nothing could go wrong in this world. The sun was shining, the Z fighters were alive, evil was gone, and Goku, the legendary Super Saiyan would return in about two hours from now. With these happy thoughts in his mind, the fact that his wrist GPS worked better here even than it had in his old time was no surprise.

_Yes. There they are._ Trunks felt Gohan and the others behind him now, flying probably as fast as they could to keep up with their mysterious stranger.

_The Z fighters…_ Trunks thought, imagining what each of them would be like. Gohan had always avoided the topics of Krillin and Piccolo, due to the terrible hurt of losing them. But they must have been great people if Gohan loved them so much.

Then there was Tien and Jautzu, which Trunks had barely heard mentioned before. And Yamcha, which had been his mother's first boyfriend.

_And…_Trunks widened his eyes, realizing in all the excitement of meeting Gohan again, he had forgotten to take a closer look at everyone.

Among those who had watched his battle with Frieza and now followed him, there was one man he had wanted to meet his whole life.

It took much of Trunks' considerable will to not look back at his father immediately. _From the horror stories Mom tells me, he'd probably blast me out of the sky right then and there, _Trunks thought amusedly. Besides, there were two hours until Goku arrived. There'd be plenty of time to see his father and start on the lost time they had to make up.

Trunks landed, deciding to try for a little mutual friendliness between himself and the Z fighters. If it had been Trunks' call, he probably would have not been so ready to trust a stranger with incredible power that had appeared out of nowhere. Even if he _had_ saved them from two of the most evil tyrants of the past century.

_Then again,_ Trunks thought fishing out the cooler capsule, _I suppose they don't know anything but trust in this world._

He released the capsule and took the opportunity to glance at Vegeta. _No way…_

It had to be his father, the Prince of all Saiyans standing there. Yes, it had to be. He was the man from the picture Bulma had managed to take of him and Goku. His own father… clothed in the most surprising outfit Trunks could have imagined. _There will be more time later to figure this out._

Trunks smiled back at his audience, bending down to pull a cream soda from the fridge. "How about a cold, refreshing drink? Goku's not scheduled to arrive for two more hours." He tried hard not to stare at his father, so continued to the others, "It's pretty hot and dry out here."

_Pink? He's wearing a pink shirt?_ Trunks suppressed a smile. _What possessed him?_

Krillin, Bulma, and Gohan came up to the fridge, trusting Trunks out of instinct more than anything. It was probably a good thing, or they'd get nowhere. It wasn't as though fighting androids all one's life heralded much people experience. Even with Bulma as your mother.

That was probably the hardest thing about this whole trip. Trunks hated to admit it, but everything his own mother had said about what she used to be like seemed to be true. And to be honest, he didn't like her much at all.

Bulma looked over her soda at Trunks, asking, "Have we met? You look so familiar."

Trunks blushed and backed away trying to avoid seeing the fact that his mother was flirting with him. "Ah, no. Sorry." _How embarrassing. And she's wearing the sort of short, skimpy, red dress I'd expect to see on a—_

"Excuse me, mister," interjected the young Gohan. Trunks looked over, surprised to hear Gohan call him mister. "How do you know my Dad?"

"Actually, I've never met your Dad. I've only just heard about him, Gohan." Trunks bit his tongue, wishing he hadn't uttered the last word.

The whole group gasped and Vegeta yelled out, "Who are you? Tell us now! How do you know Kakarot and how do you know his brat's name?"

Trunks glanced at his father, deciding to go with a little more truth than he'd originally planned on divulging. "Well, actually Fa-Vegeta," he corrected himself. _Don't give too much away, Trunks._ "I know all of your names, though I have never met any of you before."

Piccolo snarled, clawed fist raised, "Care to give us yours then, if you know so much about us?"

This was not going how Trunks had planned at all. "I'm sorry, but I can't do that."

Bulma giggled and batted her eyelashes. "Oooh! A mystery man!" And Trunks backed a little further away from her.

The three-eyed Tien jumped in and said, "And why not?"

Trunks was turning red with all of the pressure. These were the people he had wanted to make friends with and now… His anger at failure flared and before thinking about it, he snapped, "Look. Who I am doesn't matter. If you want to leave, I'm not stopping you. If you don't believe Goku is going to come, I sure am not forcing you to wait here. And if you don't want to trust me, go and do it on your own time."

Little Gohan frowned up at Trunks. _Man, why did I just do that? Great job making friends, Trunks._ The wind blew through their little canyon, making Trunks shiver.

"Well, I believe you," one small, six-year old voice said into the chilled silence.

Trunks looked down into the deep eyes of the young Saiyan. That was Gohan for you. He always managed to believe in things Trunks had long ago given up on. Feeling a different sort of affection for this little warrior, Trunks put one hand out and ruffled the wild black hair of his oldest friend. "Thanks, Gohan."


	7. Goku's Arrival

"He should be arriving any minute now." Gosh. _That has got to be the most awkward two hours of my life,_ Trunks thought, shivering from the memories.

Somehow, he had thought meeting his young parents would be as fun as meeting young Gohan or any of the Z fighters, but, boy, had he been wrong. In fact, those two encounters had gone so badly that he wasn't sure exactly what to expect from Goku anymore.

"Dad!" Gohan laughed, punching one small fist into the air. "He's here! I can feel him. Dad!"

Trunks smiled at Gohan and then turned to the rapidly growing dot in the sky. _Well, I'll just have to see for myself what Gohan's father is really like,_ he thought, secretly excited as the dot became a recognizable spaceship and crashed into the ground.

It was the moment Trunks had waited for, the moment his older mother would have loved to see. The space pod's door swung open as everyone crowded around for a closer look, all except Piccolo and Vegeta, of course. _Heh, neither of them can be seen looking excited for someone else, _Trunks chuckled to himself, _they've got to act cooler than that._

The dust began to settle. Trunks held his breath, watching as first a truly wild head of black hair arrived. Then two hands, gripping the edges of the opening and after that a quick pull up and there he was, standing up and stretching like crash landing was a part of everyday life.

Not able to contain his excitement any longer, Gohan yelled, "Daddy!"

Goku looked up, a comically confused look on his face at the sight of all his friends. Despite the utter normality of his appearance, the Z fighters cheered and whooped, somehow knowing that everything was all right with Goku back home.

Trunks wasn't quite sure what to make of him. _He looks so much like Gohan did. Those same eyes, the same body, heck, even the hair was nearly the same. Though at the moment, Goku was not wearing his colors. Orange and blue, Goku's colors, Gohan's colors,_ Trunks thought, images of his mentor involuntarily flashing through his mind. _ They're still so mush alike…_

Yet, not everything was the same. There was a sparkle, a kind of magic aura that seemed to surround Goku unlike his future son. Trunks smiled, knowing this lightening of the heart, the sense that all really was going to be right…that was what his mother had meant. This was hope.

"He knows all about you, Daddy!"

Gohan's voice snapped Trunks out of his thoughts and into the present as Goku turned to look at the mysterious, light haired boy.

"But how," Goku asked, scratching the back of his head in the exact image of his future son. "We've never met."

Trunks winced, not sure he'd be able to keep all of the secrets he needed to with everyone there. And with the impression he'd already made with most of the Z fighters…

Well, he didn't want to make the same mistake with Goku, so he interjected, "Goku, I need to talk to you." Every one of the adults looked at him as though he had just pointed a gun at their hero. "I'll answer all of your questions, but not here." He blushed slightly. "I need to talk to you alone."

Goku frowned for a second and Trunks cringed, waiting for him to refuse and say it was too dangerous. All of the others except Gohan seemed to be thinking this, but instead Goku shrugged and said, "All right. Sure."

It was a measure of their unending trust in Goku that no one said anything at all to stop him from leaving.

Trunks exhaled, unclenching his fingers and managing a smile. "This way," he said, leaping of off the ground and flying a short distance away. Here they'd still be visible by the concerned crowd, but not overheard.

When he landed, Trunks turned around saying, "Thanks, Goku."

Goku landed next to Trunks and said cheerily, "Well, shoot. I should be thanking you. I mean, you beat Frieza, right?"

Trunks nodded, "Yeah, that was me."

"Amazing," the black haired man exclaimed. "Man, I've never heard of a human having that kind of power before! And at your age?"

The younger man smirked and said, "Well, actually. I'm not entirely human." Trunks nodded back towards the group of anxious friends, and said, "Like Gohan, I am only half Earthling."

Both of Goku's eyebrows rose until they were lost in his wild hair.

"There's a lot we've got to talk about, Goku."


	8. Testing Goku

"Well, I'm all ears. Shoot," Goku said cheerily, putting his hands in his pockets, thumbs sticking out.

Trunks smiled, seeing the boyish attitude his mother had always talked about. _But still,_ Trunks thought, _what if Goku is not exactly the person she remembered so lovingly? She wasn't quite on about herself or Vegeta. What if Goku was the same?_ Trunks could not leave this to chance.

"Okay. But first, I have a question," Trunks said. "Can you transform into a Super Saiyan at will?"

Goku shrugged, "Well, at first I wasn't able to. It happened spontaneously." He smiled, like a proud child. "But now I can control it."

That made things easier. "All right, then. Can you show me right now?"

"Huh?"

Trunks looked into Goku's face and said, "Please, Goku."

Goku yanked his hands free of his pockets and said, "Well yeah. I guess I could. But why?"

With years of built up distrust blazing in his eyes, Trunks whispered, "Because. I need to know if I can trust you."

Goku frowned, putting both palms in the air. "Well, all right. I'm not sure how this will help, but here it goes."

Goku's hands lowered and clenched into fists as the rocks around the two fighters rose into the air. Trunks took a sharp breath in, feeling the cascade of energy and passion coming from Goku as he yelled.

It was almost disorienting to stand from the outside and watch. Golden sparks shot out into the air, unseen forces crackled, and a sudden gale whipped outwards as the sayain's yells increased. Goku's dark, wild hair rose upward with a life of its own as his power peaked.

Then, it happened. Trunks felt the dam break inside of Goku and he transformed. The ebony hair glowed golden and when Goku opened his eyes to look at Trunks, his eyes… They were solid teal orbs. The eyes of a Super Saiyan.

"Are you satisfied?"

"Yes." Trunks smiled, relaxing despite the fact that the man in front of him was the strongest in his timeline.

Because now, he could see some of older Gohan within this man. Whatever emotions or memories Gohan's father tapped into to transform, they were ones that made him as sober as his son always had been. It felt incredible. Like Gohan was back alive again.

Trunks said, "Man, I had forgotten what it feels like, looking from the outside in."

Goku's voice had deepened slightly, losing its humorous glint, "So, what's next, friend."

Trunks' smile turned into a smirk. "Now, we'll_ both_ be Super Saiyans."

And with much less grandeur, but all of the effects, Trunks tapped into that inner rage and watched, amused, as Goku's eyes widened in shock.

Yes, this way was much easier than explaining.

"We're exactly the same," Goku whispered, making it apparent that this was his first time seeing another of his own kind transform.

Trunks wanted to know if Goku was everything that everyone seemed to think he was. Memories of all Trunks had heard about Goku's strength made him want to test it out. Was it really true, that if only this one person had been alive, his whole life would have been different? Trunks had to know. "Let's find out."

And before any human could have followed, Trunks leapt into the air, unsheathing his sword and taking an almighty swing at Goku. Yelling and slashing downward with all of his Super Saiyan strength.

But Goku made no move to stop him.

Trunks managed to halt the blade mere inches from the other warrior, barely able to contain his horror. _Was this the man that was to save them all?_ Trunks could have killed him, just by testing him. Voice shaking, Trunks whispered, "Why didn't you try to avoid it?"

It was Goku's turn to smile. "I searched your feelings, so I knew you would stop."

Trunks gaped, marveling at Goku's wit and even more so at his trust in a complete stranger.

His mother may have been wrong about some things, but when it came to Gohan's father, it seemed as though she was dead on right. He _was_ amazing.

Trunks backed up, raising his sword. "I see. But this time, I'm not going to stop. Got it?"

Goku nodded once in understanding, smile falling into seriousness. "As you wish." Trunks watched as this legend raised one single finger, concentrating fire from every part of his body into it. The whole hand lit up like a torch of light and when Goku was satisfied with the results, he turned to Trunks and raised an eyebrow in challenge.

_Well, here goes nothing,_ Trunks thought, breathing all of his fear out into the dusty air. As soon as his fear of injuring Goku was gone, the thrill of a good fight overtook Trunks, making him smile.

He slashed diagonally towards Goku's neck, hitting the Ki enforced finger as Goku lazily blocked him. But, Trunks had no time to think of that as he swung the blade around to the other side and slashed again only to hit the one hand that was blocking.

No matter how he stabbed and feinted, Goku managed to protect himself and always with just the one finger. Despite the extraordinary nature of his blade, Goku's power made it look like nothing but a plaything and in turn, making Trunks look like an amateur.

With one final clash, the two Super Saiyans pitted their strength against each other, the fiery conflagration of their energies exploding out ward with a whoosh.

Trunks was satisfied. This guy was really something else. He leapt back, smiling at Goku and said, "Awesome. Everything I've heard is true."

Lavender hair once again fell to the sides of Trunks face and he tossed up his sword, "You're good. No, You're great." He leaned smoothly to the side, letting the tumbling weapon fall into its sheath with a familiar metallic ring. "Man, those same moves made mincemeat out of Frieza a couple of hours ago."

Goku's change was much more startling as white blonde spikes flipped suddenly to black and his gaze darkened with the blink of an eye. The older man shrugged and said, "Well, your heart just wasn't in it this time."

Trunks nodded and said, "You're right. And you know, I feel like I can trust you, Goku." He looked up at the sun, feeling the warmth and happiness of this place flow through him. "I haven't been able to trust anyone since—" _since Gohan died,_ Trunks finished in his head. He shook the lavender strands, clearing his mind. "Well, since a long time. We might as well sit down. And I'll tell you everything."


	9. Changing the Future

"I don't know where to begin," Trunks said, settling himself on a boulder and pulling up one knee to his chest.

Goku leapt nimbly upon a nearby rock and sat cross legged. "Well, how about starting with who you are. You said you were half human. And," he smirked, "I have a hunch what the other half is."

Trunks nodded. "Okay. That's easy enough. Well, my name is Trunks and this might sound a little weird, but I'm not from this time. I came in a time machine from the future. Twenty years in the future."

"Wow!" The older man exclaimed. "From the future, huh?"

"Yeah." Trunks locked his fingers around his bent knee, leaning back lazily against the pressure. "You're right that I am half Saiyan. Only three people still have Saiyan blood. You, Gohan, and Vegeta. And I got mine from Vegeta. He is my father."

There was a hard thump as Goku fell from his perch right onto the floor, laughing his head off. "You're kidding! Vegeta's son?" He leaned up on one elbow and looked rapidly between Trunks and the Saiyan prince. "Yes. Yes. I can see the resemblance."

Trunks wasn't quite sure how to respond to this, so said instead, "I will be born two years from now."

Goku stood back up and exclaimed, "Ha ha! No kidding?" And with the biggest smile Trunks had ever seen, Goku laughed, "Vegeta's going to be a _Daddy_!"

With a deep blush, Trunks decided to change subjects as quickly as he could. "Goku, I didn't only come here to tell you that. I have to talk to you about something important." He shifted weight on the rock to look at Goku more directly. "In three years, a horrible destructive duo will surface. They're monsters, Goku. That's the best way I know to describe them. They're monsters. Once this pair surfaces, the earth and everything you know will be gone for good."

Goku's face lost all trace of its previous levity. "What? Where do they come from? What's their purpose here?"

"They're created by Dr. Gero. As for what their purpose is, no one really knows. The moment those things were able to think for themselves, they rebelled and they've had their own twisted, merciless agenda ever since then. There's no rhyme or reason to what they do. They're machines of destruction. Man haters. Their first act after being born was to turn on their own creator, Dr. Gero, himself." Trunks' face contorted with rage as memories flew past. _Burning cities. Children crying out. And that laughter. That horrible laughter._ "These androids are ruthless. They delight in causing pain and chaos. Living on earth in my time is like living in a nightmare," he said, hands balling into fists. "We're always running and hiding. Looking for a way out, but there's nowhere to go."

"That's terrible," Goku whispered. Then, scratching the back of his head, he frowned. "So these androids are stronger than all of the fighters on earth in your time? Even Vegeta and me?"

Trunks looked down at the ground. "It's just me."

Goku jumped, shocked. "What?! What about the others?"

Trunks wilted. "They can't help. They're all dead. Three years from now the earth's Special Forces will be gone. I'm all that's left." The ice blue eyes narrowed. "I'm doing the best I can. Hunting me down is one of their favorite hobbies now, but its two against one. There's not much I can do against them except run. Three years from now the androids kill all of the Z Fighters, except for one…" his voice died off in thought. Here was the part Trunks had dreaded bringing up. Talking about those memories, reliving the terror all over again, was the part he had dreaded most about the encounter with Goku. But thinking about it didn't make it any easier. "That one person who escapes was my mentor and best friend, Gohan."

Goku's face showed a soft smile. "So, my son is your teacher?"

Trunks felt a sharp pain to his heart that seemed to travel straight up to his eyes, making them water. In the softest whisper yet, he bit out, "_Was._"

The smile slowly faded and Goku looked at Trunks with understanding. "I see." The dark eyes fell to the ground and Gohan's father dropped to a crouch, resting his hand on the rocky earth. "Yes. I remember, you said you are the only one now."

Trunks shook his head. He would not show his weakness now. Not here. "He narrowly escapes from that battle, but then thirteen years later they finally get him. Four years ago, my time." A strangled sound escaped from his throat unbidden. He had to go on. "Making the time machine also cost us many precious lives. So many have suffered at the hands of those beasts!" His mind drifted back home, to where his mother lived on, dodging the attacks and waiting for him to return. But there would be time to go back later, to fulfill his promise. _If he even could_. "Darn them! Man! They're just far too strong!"

"But if you became stronger than you are now… if you trained with someone who had fighting experience, then you could go back and beat them?" Goku asked. "Is that why you're here? To prevent events in this time and learn to conquer the problems in yours?"

The lavender hair was whipped as Trunks looked back up at Goku. What he said was right, although until he said it, even Trunks did not realize that's what he was going for. "Well, yes. But that's not all." Trunks winced, berating himself. _How could he nearly forget the main reason for coming in the first place? Darn it._ He reached into his front pocket and pulled out the little vial of medicine, getting up and handing it to Goku. "For your health."

Goku took it, curiously cocking his head at the man from the future. "My health?"

"Yes. You don't actually die fighting against the androids. Not too long from now you're going to catch a new virus that attacks the heart, not even a Super Saiyan can defeat it. In my time you die from it." Trunks nodded towards the little bottle. "There's no cure for this virus now, but in my time there is. Take this when you get sick and you'll be fine."

Goku's face lit up. "You're kidding me! Wow! Awesome. It's purple too! I'll bet its grape flavored."

Trunks raised one light eyebrow in amusement. "You're something else Goku. But my Mom and Gohan were right. I can trust you. She always said I could, but I'm glad to know it for myself now."

Goku put the vile in his belt, asking, "Your Mom?"

Trunks blushed, thinking of his young mother and how she had already tried to hit on him. Multiple times... "Yes. Bulma's my mother."

Goku's laughter was unstoppable as fell back onto the ground. "Bulma's your mother? Haha!"

The light blue eyes gazed off into the distance as Trunks thought about his future mother.

Eventually Goku stopped laughing and stood up beside Trunks, once again the strong and serious hero.

He put one tanned hand upon Trunks' shoulder, looking off into the distance as if they could see the same vision. "Everything will be all right, Trunks. I've known your mother for a long time now. She's strong enough to make it until you come back."

The lilac haired boy nodded, finding that despite all logic, he believed Goku's words. _Everything will be all right._


	10. Hope and Understanding

"Well," Trunks said, dragging the words out. "I guess I better head back home." He turned his pale gaze to the sky, taking in every minute he could get of this place. The whole thing seemed too wonderful to be true. Like a dream so good, one would wish that sleep was eternal.

"What? You want to leave? All ready?" Goku asked, tilting his head at the stranger from the future.

_He sure isn't making this any easier on me,_ Trunks thought to himself. "It's not really a 'want' sort of thing. I belong there, not here. And I need to get back to Mom and tell her everything worked out all right. She's probably already worried sick," he said, trying to convince himself to go return to that nightmarish world. "I've already risked changing the future too much by meeting the others. I really should go before I risk them figuring out who I am."

Goku scratched his crazy black hair in deep thought. "Yeah, but," he said, "Couldn't you stay for a while? We'll give you a different name and say you're from the future, but not say more. And then you could program your time machine to go back to right after you left, so Bulma wouldn't be waiting any longer than she would have been anyway."

Trunks frowned and looked up at Goku. _Is he actually wanting me to stay?_ It seemed like he was going through a lot of trouble to do so, but it was just hard for Trunks to believe. Never before had he had someone who really wanted him to be around besides Gohan. It was strange. Goku surely could not want to be around Trunks as much as he wanted to be around Goku. I mean, Trunks was only seventeen…just a boy compared to this legend. His eyes narrowed as he asked, "Why? Why do you want me to stay?"

Goku stopped scratching his head, though his eyes were still thoughtful as he looked at the young man. "Well, I want to help you beat these androids. To save the future in as much as it can be saved. And—" Goku stopped, blushing slightly.

Trunks raised an eyebrow, "And what?"

The older man looked slightly sheepish as he continued, "Well, it just that I really want to spar with someone at my own level and," he sighed before saying, "and you are the first person I have ever met that I felt I could depend on in that same way that everyone always seems to depend on me." Goku looked up at Trunks, saying, "I know it's kind of silly. I mean, I have a lot of people there for me. And they're great, but…"

Trunks gaped, not daring to believe what he was hearing, but utterly unable to deny it.

Goku continued, voice soft and thoughtful. "But ever since that day my brother returned to Earth and I died, it's as though something changed. As if I started to reach levels the others couldn't match and they sensed it too. I guess it really hit me when my best friend and previous equal, Krillin, stepped back and started to think I was everyone's only hope. And ever since then, I guess I have been."

A slight breeze ruffled the warrior's dark hair and Trunks nodded with his own plethora of experiences. He knew the change that Goku spoke of. For him it had been when Gohan had died. Before that time, he had been a strong kid, but still a kid. If he couldn't save the world, oh well, he wasn't the only one.

"I can tell that you understand what it's like. And it's often the scariest thing ever. I mean, what if you fail? Then who is there to save your loved ones." The dark eyes turned suddenly bright and he said, "Even though I plan on never failing them, it's a relief to be around someone else who really understands, you know."

Trunks nodded, smiling. Goku needed him to stay as much as he wanted to be there. Trunks needed hope and Goku needed understanding.

_Hold on, Mom. I have two more lives I need to save. Goku's and my own. I know you'll understand._ Who better to understand why Trunks needed to stay than the mother who hated how her son had to grow up in such a harsh world.

And Goku was right. Trunks could probably figure out how to reprogram the ship to arrive a few hours after he had left that time. Yes. And when he went back, he would finally be strong enough to beat the androids as well. "So," he said, returning from his own thoughts. "What should my name be? Got any ideas."

Goku groaned. "Awww man. You don't want my help with this one, trust me."

Trunks chuckled. "Okay, Goku. I'll trust you."


	11. Welcome Home, Trunks

"Hey everyone! Sorry about that," Goku said as he waved and approached the anxiously waiting group of friends.

Gohan ran up to his father without hesitation, yelling, "Daddy!" as the rest of the fighters gathered around their hero and the mysterious guest.

"Hey little guy," Gohan's father said, picking his son up in his arms, Saiyan armor and all, to give him a hug.

"So, I see_ you're_ still here," a harsh voice rasped at Trunks. He flinched, hating how much his father loathed him, but secretly hating more the fact that he let it get to him.

The rest of the Z fighters seemed to share Vegeta's sentiments, however, and Goku seemed to sense it. He set his son back on the ground and said, "Hey everyone. This is CK, Calvin Klein."

Trunks noticed that Piccolo had jerked slightly and raised an eyebrow ridge, as if in disbelief.

Goku continued, "He's from twenty years in the future and is going to be training with me for a while before going back to his own time."

The whole group gasped and muttered, Bulma exclaiming, "Wow! That's amazing! But how did you travel through time, CK? Is it one of your special abilities?"

Trunks smiled, not minding his young mother so much now for some odd reason. Maybe it was the trusting nature of Goku rubbing off on him all ready. There was no harm in showing them anyway. "No. Not an ability. I traveled back here in a time machine." Trunks pulled out the capsule pouch and released his ship in a cloud of smoke.

The group gasped again, all except for Bulma, who immediately walked up to the ship and started inspecting it like a professional. _Good old Mom,_ Trunks thought with a chuckle.

"_CK,_" Piccolo said, emphasizing the two words strangely. "Don't you have something to warn us about?"

Both Goku and Trunks froze, understanding coming to both of them. Either Piccolo had the best intuition ever heard of, or else… "You heard all that?!"

Piccolo smirked knowingly, "My ears do more than just frame my face, _CK_." He placed the odd emphasis on the false name again and said, "Don't worry. I know how to keep a secret and I know when to spill one, so tell us. I'd like to hear more details on these androids."

Trunks sighed with relief. For a second he was afraid Piccolo was about to tell his parents about the product of their passions. _How could I have doubted Piccolo? I mean, Gohan had always loved him so much._

As concisely as he could, Trunks explained all the details he could think of about the androids. As he did so, it was not lost entirely on Trunks that the whole group warmed up considerably towards him upon hearing his story. Well, everyone except Vegeta, that is.

They listened intently, asking a lot of detail oriented questions. _What day will they arrive? How many miles south again? Just the two?_

It was as they were discussing who was going to train that Bulma rejoined the circle from inspecting the ship and said, "Why not just go and destroy Dr. Gero's lab? We could use the dragon balls to do it and avoid this whole mess. And CK." She turned to Trunks and gestured to the yellow ship. "Who made this time machine? It's incredible!"

Quickly deciding how much to tell, he said, "Actually, you did. About twenty years in the future."

Bulma punched a fist and said, "Ha! I knew it had to be a genius! So, you know me twenty years from now, huh? Do I keep my good looks as well as my intelligence? How do you know me?"

Trunks blushed. _Good old Mom. Guess she didn't change that much after all._ "Uh… Yeah. You did. I live in the remains of the Capsule Corporation building with you. So, we know each other pretty well."

"Out of all the people who survive, why did _she _have to be the one to make it? Fate must be cruel indeed. Glad I got killed early on or else _I_ might have had to suffer the insufferable indigence of living under the same roof," Vegeta taunted.

"And just what's _that_ supposed to mean!" Bulma turned on Vegeta and they began to fight as only two lovers could.

The others laughed, taking it as a sign of the world being back to normal. And Trunks smiled, watching his parents as they had once been.

Goku took the opportunity to turn to his son and ask, "Hey, Gohan. Do you mind if Trunks comes to stay with us for a while back home?"

The little boy frowned and said, "Who's Trunks?"

Piccolo and Trunks both twitched, the namekian recovering first and saying, "Nice nickname, Goku." He turned to Gohan and said, "Sorry kid. Your Dad has the memory of a swamp bug. Calvin Klein is a brand of trunks and all he remembered was the trunks part. What do you think?" He asked slyly, glancing over at the lilac haired human. "Do you mind if we just call you Trunks from now on?"

_Man. He is good. _The young man smirked. "Well, yeah. That's fine. I'd rather be called CK by most people, but if I'm staying with Goku, I'll go by Trunks."

The little boy smiled, "So, Mister CK, you'll be staying with us?"

Trunks nodded, noting that Vegeta and Bulma seemed to be cooling down a little bit. "Only if you drop the Mister. It makes me feel much older than I am."

"Really?" Gohan skipped into the air. "All right! I always wanted a big brother!"

Bulma turned back around to Trunks. Judging by the way Vegeta was so huffy, it seemed as though she had won this round. "Hey, CK. Do you mind if I borrow the time capsule while you train? I can reprogram it to go where you need to and everything, but I think I can improve the design a bit."

Trunks frowned, not liking the idea of the ship being out of his sight. Without thinking, Goku said, "Sure thing, Bulma."

And the teal haired, young woman did not wait for another invitation, but pressed the contract button and picked up the capsule. "Thanks."

"Well guys," Goku said, encompassing all of the Z fighters. "Let's meet back here at 9am in three years on May 12th, okay?" The group tensed and nodded, feeling the pressure. "Oh, and Bulma. We'll come visit you in a couple weeks to see how the ship work is going, okay?"

Bulma winked one bright blue eye and said, "Can't wait."

Goku asked his son to put one hand on his Gi while he rested one hand on Trunks' shoulder, saying, "Oh yeah. I forgot to mention that I learned this really cool trick while I was in space. I call it Instant Transmission."

Vegeta looked back despite himself, intrigued. Everyone else perked up, excited.

"Well, here it goes," Goku said and put two fingers to his forehead, closing his eyes in concentration. Trunks frowned, not understanding what Goku was doing until Goku opened his eyes and said, "There."

Gohan jumped around, "Wow, Dad! We're home!" And Trunks looked around to see a place so beautiful that he would have never had the reference to even dream about it.

There were hills and hills, covered with tall, majestic trees. The grass was so green, Trunks looked down at the contrast with his sneakers. He had never realized that something could look so green, so alive, so perfect. The smell of wild mint hit him in the face along with pine and wood smoke from the house. All so wonderful and good.

He looked down the slope they stood on and saw the neat paths, the clean laundry, a sparkling blue thing that might even be water. The sky was so bright and the two houses he could see were intact and peaceful.

Trunks was struck with the colors he had always tried to imagine, the ones he knew had to have once existed before the androids came and destroyed the world. It was almost more than he could take. As if everything he had ever wished for was granted in one single moment.

Gohan was running down the hill, free and laughing, his black hair like a banner behind him. _A Gohan that was free from pain…_ He had always imagined it, but nothing even came close to seeing that little boy, so full of life and joy.

"Well?" Goku whispered.

The lavender haired boy looked over in response, his eyes watering despite themselves. _This was what life should have been like. What it could have been._

The wise man smiled, removing his hand from where it still rested on his friend's shoulder and simply said, "Welcome home, Trunks."


	12. Reunited At Last

"Mom!" the voice of a young Gohan called out as he ran towards the house, his footsteps a counter rhythm to the rustle of drying laundry. Trunks could see a woman reaching up to place another sheet.

It had been a long time since he had seen her. Ever since Gohan died, he just couldn't do it. But he still immediately recognized Chi Chi. Gohan skipped into the air as he reached her, saying, "Mom. I'm home! And guess what! Dad—"

"And just what makes you think you can fly off like that? Huh, Gohan!" the stern woman yelled back, glaring at her son from behind the sheet. "Just what do you think? That you go flying off at the first sign of danger?" She interrogated.

_Yep. Chi Chi is sure still the same,_ Trunks thought amusedly.

She continued yelling, her son wilting under the stern words. "I was worried sick. Did you ever stop to think about that? You could have been killed and I wouldn't have even known…known… where…"

Chi Chi's voice dropped out from under her as she saw her husband, standing there. Really standing there. Alive. "Goku…?"

Trunks looked over at his friend in time to catch a rare sort of smile on his face. It was the sort of look that made you realize that while a hero loves everyone as a friend, there is only one person in the whole world imprinted on his heart. And from Goku's whisper of "Chi Chi…" Trunks instantly knew without a doubt who that person was. Goku spread his arms out wide with a smile, saying, "I'm home."

The two walked up to each other, Chi Chi seeming to be torn between smiling and screaming, while Goku couldn't seem to decide between tears and laughter. All of the emotions flooding through them were almost too much, it was mind-boggling what one person could do to the other.

Chi Chi smiled as they reached each other and Goku grinned back. The young woman put her cheek on her husband's chest. It felt so good, so right. She whispered softly, ruffling the fabric of his shirt, "Goku, you big dope. Of course you're home."

One single tear fell down Goku's face as he wrapped his arms around Chi Chi's shoulders, encompassing her with all of the love he had held inside for so long. The tear fell, landing into the long, midnight hair which he bent down to kiss. Something was whole now that should never have been broken, Goku knew this much and whispered, "I missed you."

Something stirred within Trunks. A set of emotions that had never been touched before. At least not like this. Seeing them made him feel… He wasn't sure what it made him feel.

And he wasn't sure if he liked it or not. It felt good, but so foreign that he just wasn't sure.

_It's as if…_ Trunks thought, _…as if they really love each other._

After thinking this, Trunks felt stupid. _Of course they love each other. They're married, Trunks._

Chi Chi backed up to look into Goku's dark eyes, raising one hand to wipe the tear mark from his face. Everyone else wanted her husband to always be so strong. But she loved those moments when he was human. When he showed that he had worries just like everyone else. She whispered, "Everything will be all right, Goku."

It was then, as Goku moved to place his large hand over her slight one that Trunks realized what he was feeling for the first time in his life.

Not once, in all of his seventeen years had he seen two parents show love for each other. There had never been any chance to. His father and Goku had died before he could remember and Gohan didn't have anyone before he was murdered.

Love was something Trunks had never seen, never felt like this. He had only seen it with the shows his mother had watched, starry eyed. But it was nothing at all like this.

What Trunks was feeling now was like…like moonlight. Yes. That sort of amazing, invigorating reflection of pure, white light. Except this moonlight held a warmth so strong, that Trunks felt he would never forget it as long as he lived.

His mother had only asked for Trunks to bring back hope, but there was so much more that their world had lost. _Hold on, Mom,_ Trunks called out as he watched Goku and Chi Chi touch noses. _I won't just bring you back hope. I'll bring back color too. And,_ he followed along with Gohan as the two reunited lovers turned to go inside. _If I can manage it, Love._


	13. Two Conditions

As they all entered the kitchen, Goku and Chi Chi started the slow process of unscrambling their senses enough to take notice of their surroundings. Gohan felt right at home, jumping up into his seat at the table without hesitation.

Trunks felt awkward, even more so when it took Chi Chi a few glances to recognize that he wasn't supposed to be there, even with Trunks' bright purple hair juxtaposed right against the wooden door.

The dark haired woman turned slightly red, reminding Trunks starkly of his own mother when she was about to explode. Trunks winced, preparing himself.

But instead, she turned her fiery gaze to Goku, nostrils flaring. "Goku? When were you planning on mentioning this?"

Trunks' mother had always told him that there was only one thing in this world scarier than a Super Saiyan…and that was a Super Saiyan's wife. He always thought she was joking, but now he wasn't so sure. Somehow, it took on a new reality as he saw the mightiest of earth's warriors melting under Chi Chi's glares.

"J-Just for a little while, okay?" Goku backed up, hands raised as if he was the victim in an armed robbery.

"This had BETTER not interfere with Gohan's studies! You hear?" Chi Chi pointed her finger at Goku and said, "Your martial arts buddies like Oolong and Roshi have already been a terrible influence on Gohan! And I will have no more of it. …Okay?"

The last two syllables managed to be a life threatening sentence when spoken with that tone and Goku took one more step back, saying, "Trunks isn't like them, Chi Chi. Really." He put both hands behind his crazy hair like a little boy who was being reprimanded and said, "If anything, Trunks is a better example than I am."

Chi Chi folded her arms, shifting to laughter so fast that Trunks had whiplash. She raised an eyebrow and slyly commented, "Well, that's not too hard to do. Now is it?" Goku laughed and shrugged good naturedly.

Trunks decided it would be best to make the best impression he could before Goku or anyone else could ruin the chance for him. Living with his own mother taught him that the general attitude of the woman of the house could greatly affect the comfortablity of life for everyone in the vicinity.

"Mrs. Son," Trunks said, holding out one hand in invitation. "My name is Calvin Klein. I'll really try not to impose on your guys' lives. I just need somewhere to stay for a while, while I train with your husband. And don't worry," Trunks gave her a wink. "I can almost guarantee that I cook better than either of these two. And I can do dishes to boot."

"So, Trunks is just a nickname?" She asked. Trunks nodded. Chi Chi laughed and shook his hand, charmed despite herself. "Okay, Trunks. Can I ask you a question?"

The young man hesitated. There were a lot of questions he could not answer. Especially those she was most likely to ask about, regarding his origins and parentage. But if so, he'd figure some way out of it. "Sure thing. I'll answer if I can."

Goku looked momentarily nervous. His wife had a way of prying out answers. Through both force and will. He just wasn't sure if Trunks quite knew what he was getting into.

But then Goku remembered who his friend had been living with for all of these years._Bulma._ _If anyone could handle Chi Chi, it would probably be Bulma's son, _he thought with a chuckle, relieved once more.

Chi Chi walked over to the fridge, starting to gather more items to add to the soup she had on the stove. She set the items down on the countertop, her son jumping out of his chair to help wash the carrots. "I don't mind you staying with us, Trunks," she began. "But there are two conditions. One," she narrowed her eyes, "I would like to know a bit more about you and why you are training with my husband."

Trunks could understand where she was coming from. After all, he was the one who had to test Goku before telling him anything. But still… "I'll have to be honest, Mrs. Son," he said, looking at the wooden floor. "I can't tell you a lot of that information. And I don't want to lie to you, that wouldn't be showing the respect you deserve. But I will tell you as much as I can."

Chi Chi nodded, impressed further by the young man's manners. She then glanced at her dark haired son, and asked, "Two. Would you be Gohan's tutor?"

Trunks was taken aback by the unexpected request and Gohan looked surprised as well. The two boys quickly glanced at each other, black eyes peering hopefully up into blue ones.

_Trunks, you're pathetic. An emotional wreck. _Trunks heard the memory once again._ You're as bad as I was when my mother wouldn't let me train with my father. From now on I'm your master and you're my pupil. Got it?_

He smiled reminiscently. It would be hard. Being reminded of the one he had lost every moment of the way, but… something about it felt right. The way that a cut hurts when you heal it, but at the same time, part of your body intuitively knows that it is good.

Trunks first gave the little boy a nod, receiving a big grin in return and then he said, "Yes, Chi Chi. That'd be no problem. I'd love to tutor your son."

Goku looked at his friend, dark eyes understanding and unusually thoughtful. Trunks glanced over at the only one who could comprehend what he was about to put himself through. And through that eye contact, silently asked for approval.

Gohan's Dad smiled and gave a small nod, thinking, _If only you knew how much you've changed in these few hours. The light that has come into your eyes. You are a strong, young man, Trunks._

The lavender haired boy joined his new student at the sink, as Goku continued his thoughts,_ But for a little while, I'd like to show you all the things that are worth living for. Just for a while…_

He laughed inside as Gohan taught Trunks how to peel potatoes and then challenged him to a race, the older boy playing along. Goku smiled. _You'll be fine, Trunks. Everything's going to be all right._


	14. Chew Attack

"All right!!" Goku managed before he ferociously attacked his bowls of rice and soup. They were gone and he was on the third set by the time the other three had even managed to pick up their silverware to start.

Trunks gaped. Somehow in all of the stories, no one had ever really gotten across just how much of a glutton their great hero was. "Poor food. It didn't even stand a chance," commented Trunks, looking at Gohan conspiratorially. The six year old giggled and Chi Chi sighed.

Trunks looked at his own bowl and for the first time in four years, cried, "Chew Attack!" before digging in. It was so great. To be here in this house with a family was a new experience to Trunks, and one that he really liked.

Gohan copied his new role model happily, raising his own silverware and repeating, "Chew Attack!"

The food stuck in Trunks' throat as he choked. Somehow, he hadn't been prepared for the reminder of his loss so soon. It was more than he could handle. _Gohan…_

_The two of them sitting at the kitchen table. Gohan in his father's colors."Chew Attack!" I yelled, copying my mentor. I wanted to be just like him someday. He was everything to me. My brother, my father, my best friend…_

"Are you all right, Trunks?" Chi Chi's voice cut in, concerned.

The visitor looked up and blushed as he saw Chi Chi, Gohan, and even Goku had stopped eating to look at him. "Oh. Uh. Yeah," Trunks stuttered, shoveling some rice into his mouth. "I'm fine. Just thinking."

It was good enough for Goku and he resumed stuffing himself without thinking. Chi Chi however had to make a conscious effort to drop the subject and Gohan looked a little worried.

"So, Calvin," the young mother asked, "Why are you training with Goku?"

Trunks was so relieved for a change of subject that he leaped on it, telling Chi Chi the essentials of the androids and how they had destroyed the future. "…So, I figured if I become stronger, we can finally live in peace," Trunks finished, consuming some more of the soup. "Man, this stuff is great, Chi Chi. Nothing against my mother's cooking, but your food is incredible!"

Chi Chi blushed. "Glad someone appreciates it," she said with a glare at her husband, or rather the bowl in front of her husband's face. _There was just no changing that boy…_ She sighed resignedly and asked, "So, you have a family back there then?"

Trunks shrugged. "It's just Mom and me now."

With sympathetic eyes, Chi Chi looked at the young man, saying, "That's got to be awfully lonely for her. Especially with you gone."

Guilt washed over Trunks once again and if he had the time machine in his pocket, he probably would have just used it to go back home right then. "Yeah… But at least she won't be bored. I mean with all of the stuff she invents..."

Right then, there was a small _flump_ from one side of the table and everyone looked over at Gohan.

The poor six year old was so tired, he had fallen asleep right on top of his dinner bowls.

Goku smiled at his small son and said, "I'll take him up to bed. I guess it's been a long day." And with careful ease, the proud father picked up his child and made his way up the stairs.

Trunks turned from watching them back to the table and said, "Well, I guess I better get started on the thing I said about dishes."

Chi Chi got up as Trunks started gathering Goku's sixteen empty bowls and said, "No. It's all right, Calvin. I mean, Trunks. You're the guest here. Why don't you go on up and help Goku with Gohan. And then he figure out where you'll sleep tonight."

A part of him wanted to stay and help, but logic won out and Trunks simply said, "Thank you, Chi Chi."

Trunks could see Goku's silhouette in one of the doorways as he went up the stairs. With a sparkle in his dark eyes, the taller man whispered, "Isn't it amazing?"

The light haired boy stepped up next to his friend and looked into the small, clean room where Gohan slept, chest rising and falling peacefully. _Yes. It was amazing._

Goku read all of the emotions in Trunks' eyes as they watched the sleeping boy for a few more moments. All of the sadness and all of the hope hidden there. Goku shut the door.

"Well," he stretched and yawned. "I guess it's time we find you a place to sleep. There's not much here, but I think we can figure out something."

"I can just sleep on the floor if you give me a blanket or two," Trunks offered. "I often had to sleep outdoors when the androids were trying to track me down. Or when I was training with Gohan." He suppressed the twinge of pain at the memories.

Goku laughed, "There will be plenty of time for camping when we're training, Trunks, but I think Chi Chi'd kill me for suggesting you sleep on the floor. I've already died once and I don't plan on doing it again anytime soon, okay?" Trunks nodded and Goku put one hand on his shoulder. "Come on. Let's fix you up on the couch for tonight."


	15. Study Schedule

_I dreamed…I actually dreamed._

It had been years since Trunks could say that he really had liked the images he had in his sleep. For the first night since he had started fighting the androids, no nightmares plagued him, none at all.

Trunks smiled and breathed in happily, turning over slightly with a stretch. _And such wonderful dreams…_ He would say that they were so wonderful that he didn't want to wake up, but that wouldn't be true, since life now was like the best dream he'd ever had.

There was a soft set of sighs from right next to the couch and Trunks tensed, sensing he wasn't by himself and opening up one eye to the morning sunlight.

There was no doubt where the sighs had come from. Trunks smiled despite his shock at not waking up alone. Two pairs of eager and impatient, dark eyes were staring straight at him from not even one meter away.

Goku was sitting, backwards on a chair pulled from the kitchen and Gohan was sitting on the floor next to a considerable pile of textbooks.

Before Trunks had any time to ask, they both beamed and exclaimed, "You're awake! When do we start?"

Trunks sat up, feeling a crazy desire to laugh at the two Saiyan warriors. "Uhmmm…"

"Goku, Gohan! Leave the poor boy alone, he hasn't even had breakfast, yet!" Chi Chi yelled, coming into the living room from the kitchen. "You've got to give him some time to breathe. You can't just bombard him the moment he wakes up." She finished glaring the two boys down and then turned to Trunks, asking, "So, Trunks, do you like tea, or juice, or maybe coffee? I think I even have lemons that I could slice up if you'd rather just have that with some ice water. Oh, and we have pudding and muffins and I can make a pie if you want. Or do you like more of an eggs and bacon sort of breakfast?"

Trunks felt a little dazed and only managed an, "Uhmmm…" again before Chi Chi continued.

"Actually, I'll just make it all." She decided. "You just sit tight there, it will just be a bit." And with that she bustled back into the kitchen, starting twenty projects at once.

The two alacritous sets of eyes, turned back to Trunks and he smiled, not wanting to admit he was still really tired. "Well, Goku. I think it'd be better if we began _after_ breakfast. That way we don't have to stop sparring half way through to satisfy your stomach."

Goku put one finger to his lip in a thoughtful manner, "Oh, yeah. You're probably right." Then brightening up, he said, "Well, I'll go see if I can help Chi Chi, then!"

Gohan and Trunks both looked at him nervously, but let him go anyway. In only a few seconds they heard Gohan's mother chasing Goku out of the kitchen and for once they could both agree with Chi Chi's decision. A pure blooded Saiyan was not the best kitchen hand to have before a meal if you wanted anything to make it to the table untouched.

"Well," Trunks said, looking at the six year old version of his mentor. "I think we better see just what I am supposed to be tutoring you in." He winked, "Just to make sure I actually know it."

Gohan laughed. "Right!" And picked up the textbooks enthusiastically. They were almost as tall as he was and Trunks had that odd desire to laugh out loud again.

"Here, Gohan. Let me take at least one," The light haired boy requested.

The six year old looked up at him, frowning. "I can carry them all, Trunks. Really. I'm stronger than I look."

Trunks chuckled, "Oh yes. I know you are. Don't worry. I just was wanting to look at the material while you got settled at your desk with the other books."

"Oh," the little boy said, smiling again. "Okay then." Shifting his workload to one hand, he grabbed the top textbook and handed it to his new tutor. "My room's upstairs. Follow me!"

Trunks looked down at _The Basics of Algebraic Equations and Intermediate Graphing _as he followed Gohan up the stairs and into his room_._ Shaking his head, he had to think, _Man, do they know how to make it sound exciting. Wow-wee._

Gohan set the rest of the books down carefully and hopped up into the desk chair, pulling out pen and paper.

It was as Gohan looked at him with those bright black eyes, that Trunks gave a momentous sigh and realized just what he had gotten himself into. _Well,_ he decided. _The first thing I have got to do if I'm supposed to teach a six-year old this stuff is to make it a little less boring._ He tossed the text book over onto the bed and leaned against the wall in thought, folding his arms. "Well, your mom is probably going to want a schedule of what we'll be doing if she didn't change much over the twenty years," Trunks said with a smirk. "So, we might as well do that first."

Gohan's face fell a little bit as expected, but he was an obedient boy and said, "Okay, Mister Trunks."

Trunks grabbed a black marker from the writing utensil unit sitting on the desk. "Drop the Mister, remember? So, do you have a hacky sack or a couple of darts?" he asked, starting to riffle through the course subjects and write them down in the middle of a blank page.

The little boy was surprised, "Well, yeah. A couple of darts."

Trunks pretended not to see the questioning looks Gohan was giving him. "Would you mind grabbing them, please? We'll only need two." Finishing the list, Trunks began to draw circles starting from the center.

Gohan scrambled down from his seat, sensing that something exciting was going to happen. He dove into his closet and by the time he had grabbed the darts and returned to the desk, Trunks had pinned up two pieces of paper on the back of a cardboard box. Gohan looked at them seeing one contained course subjects and the other seemingly random numbers between 1 and 12.

Both boys smiled, Gohan finally understanding how they were going to plan his schedule.

"Ready," Trunks grinned, taking one of the darts from Gohan and backing up to the other side of the room. "You take subjects, I'll take times. Ready, set, go!"


	16. First Lesson

About an hour later when Chi Chi came up with two trays of breakfast for the boys, she was absolutely stunned. _What was going on here?!_

Trunks was sitting, a large notebook on his lap, using a compass and ruler to show Gohan what seemed to be Geometry. And her little Gohan… _He looks so attentive. I've never seen him so interested in schoolwork before, _she thought to herself, simply amazed. _How in the world did Trunks do it?_

She hated to interrupt, but they were bound to be starving with how hard they were working. "Gohan. Trunks. I brought you some breakfast."

Chi Chi came over to the desk and put the two overflowing trays down on the more empty side, moving aside a few papers. One of them, in bold black ink caught her attention.

"_**Classes and Study Schedule"**_

She positively beamed. This was wonderful! Better than she had ever dreamed. Trunks was going to be the best thing that ever happened to her son. _Harvard, here we come, _she thought, delusions of grandeur overflowing her mind.

Trunks picked up a spoon and exclaimed, "Wow, Chi Chi! This smells delicious! Thanks."

"No problem," she said, head still in the clouds. "I'll leave you two alone now. Study hard, Gohan."

Trunks and Gohan watched as Chi Chi left the room in a daze. When the door clicked shut, Gohan picked up his own spoon and looked at his mentor as if silently asking permission for something.

His teacher understood. With a slight smile, Trunks nodded and they both raised their silverware, yelling, "Chew Attack!" and proceeding to shovel in food in the Saiyan way of things.

When they had both finished, Trunks pulled out the notepad again and continued their lesson. "So, in kite making, it takes a good combination of Physics and Geometry to get the best and most creative designs."

He pointed to a formula from the open physics book and had Gohan copy it down into his study notebook.

"You see in order to fly, a kite has to have enough surface area in order to create the upward pressure from the air hitting it and then you've got to make sure that that upward force is bigger than the weight of the kite as well as gravity."

Gohan nodded seriously. "But wouldn't it be easier to just go outside and see if the kite flies?"

Trunks smiled, "Well, in some cases, yes. But you don't want to keep making kites over and over again just to try them out and have them crash every time, do you? Not when there's a way to find out before hand if it will work. Then you can put more effort into just making one or two."

The little boy thought about it for a second and then said, "Yeah, that does make sense."

Trunks looked at the wall clock, seeing how it was already almost ten in the morning. They had covered a lot of ground, so Trunks said, "Well, sorry Gohan. But it's now time for your first few homework assignments…"

He expected Gohan to be at least a little put out that he was getting homework already, but the young Saiyan excitedly pulled out a homework planner his mom had given him and smiled. "All right!"

Trunks picked up the massive history textbook. "Okay. First I want you to research the history of kites and write a short essay covering each continent's progess," he said, observing the little boy's handwriting as he wrote in the planner.

Somehow in all the time Trunks had spent around Gohan, he had never seen how his hand writing had looked. This Gohan's writing was very neat and tidy with only the occasional misshaped letter of a six-year old. _I wonder if my Gohan's handwriting was like this when he grew up? _

The pen stopped and Trunks continued, "And then I would like you to make a kite design. Including all of the pre-calculations for flight and estimated material weights."

Gohan meticulously wrote the assignments down and when he was done, Trunks continued, "That should cover…let's see… Geometry, Physics, Algebra, History, and English for today." Trunks leaned back on two of his seat legs, stretching his back. "So, we'll hit Biology, Chemistry, and Literature later. Cool, those are all fun ones." Ideas spun through Trunks' mind. "But just make sure that kite's a good design, 'cause I'll be asking Goku, I mean, your dad, to help us build it."

Without any delay, Gohan beamed and turned to his notebooks, enthusiastically looking at pictures and texts for his essay and scribbling away at formulas for his design.

_What a kid,_ Trunks thought, getting out of his chair and heading out of the room.

"Trunks?" Gohan had looked back to see his mentor leave.

Trunks turned around, hand still on the doorknob, looking at the young boy. "Yeah, Gohan?"

The little guy blushed and spurted out, "I've always wanted a big brother like you. Thanks for teaching me. You're cool."

Trunks smiled, thinking, _I'll try to always be there for you, Gohan._

The implications of his statement, hit him like an energy blast in the stomach a split second later.

The light haired boy turned away from his student, trying to control his thoughts and emotions. _I just can't get attached to him like this!_ He yelled at himself, trying to bring some logic into his actions._ Gohan is dead. My Gohan is dead. I need to keep my distance before I lose the will to go back. I have to go back. I promised. I promised I'd go back._

Trunks did not turn to look at the young face of his old mentor. Then again, he didn't really need to in order to see his face anymore. It was imprinted on his heart. _Like some sort of piece of a family I will never know._

His voice distant, Trunks said quietly, "Thank you, Gohan. Tell me when you finish."

And with that, he left the room, not looking back.


	17. Time to Think

He went down the stairs quietly, utterly lost in his own thoughts.

_Why was I stupid enough to think I could teach Gohan without getting attached?_ His light eyebrows formed a scowl out of his blue eyes. _Why did I come here in the first place?_

To his astonishment, Trunks was having difficulty coming up with the answer. He knew that there had once been a logical and practical reason for coming to Goku's house, but now… It seemed as though all of the answers he could come up with were ones that had to do with his heart, not his mind. Everything had changed, had been switched around.

Trunks did not feel as though he could face anyone, especially Chi Chi, at that moment of weakness. He needed some time.

He avoided the kitchen by slipping silently out of the first floor window and into the sunlit hills. His heart gave an extra beat as he was once again swept away by the beauty and colors of this place. _How can I go back?_ _How can I leave?_

He ran up the nearest hill as fast as he possibly could without transforming. His body knew what to do, instinctively leaping and dodging forest obstacles. The wind whipped his lilac hair back from where it normally rested on his forehead and he couldn't help but revel in the feeling of his own strength.

This seemed to be what he mostly needed. The freedom. The knowledge that he could do something on his own. His independence increased with every hill he covered, every mile he ran. For a while, he was even able to forget all of his problems as he focused solely on his muscles' movements. _Perhaps I am better off alone… _

Trunks heard the rushing sound of natural water and made his way to the cliff where river transformed majestically into waterfall.

It was wonderful. The falling sheets created nearly tangible rainbows out of the sunlight. There were very few trees up here, but instead of seeming empty, the openness made the whole world appear vast. The sky opening up, blue and serene accented this quality. Here he could breathe in the mist and feel the slight breeze ruffle the folds of his jacket. It was a wonderful place, full of life and peace.

Trunks saw the beauty and without warning, a pang of loneliness shot through him. Something had changed in that past day… He never had wanted someone there before. Not like this. When Gohan had died, it had been more of a constant ache, a continual emptiness. This time, it felt less like pain and more like wanting happiness. More than anything, he wished for a friend.

_How could I let this happen?_ Trunks thought. _Wasn't the plan to come here to deliver the medicine and return? How did I let myself get close to them?_

"I guess I wasn't the only one who needed some time away from things," a familiar voice sounded above the noise of the waterfall.

Trunks felt the instant lightening of the heart he had come to associate with being around Goku. He looked around, wondering how he had missed the tall man on this lonely cliff. Goku waved cheerily from the second level in a bushy tree, eyes still retaining that far-off thoughtful look.

What Trunks found he wanted most right now was to stay here, up on this wide cliff, Goku there with him. But he doubted that the dark haired man wanted the same thing. After all, he had come all of the way out here for peace. And Trunks wasn't about to ruin that for him. Heaven knew that Goku did not get much peace.

"I can leave," Trunks offered, turning to look at the apple tree his friend was lying in so lazily.

Goku leaned back further into the branches' embrace and looked at the sky, saying, "Only if you want to."

There was a fierce battle going on inside of Trunks at these words. If he was smart, he would leave now and find some other place to think things through. By staying here, he was tempting emotions that would make his imminent departure near impossible. Yet, there was such peace here. _It feels so right._

Trunks sat on the moist ground, resting his chin upon his knuckles, still strangling his emotions. "I'm not sure _what_ I want anymore..."

Goku looked over at his friend solemnly with those fathomless black eyes of his. The waterfall made their silence comfortable as each struggled with their own battles. Finally, Goku spoke up in a whisper barely audible over the crashing waters, "If it helps any. I'd like you to stay, Trunks. 'Cause you know, I think we could both use some time out here."

Trunks met his gaze with a sky blue stare. _I shouldn't stay. I should go to Capsule Corporation right now and get my time machine and…_

He couldn't seem to get himself to want to go back. Not yet… There were some things he had to figure out first.

Giving into Goku's wisdom Trunks nodded, saying, "Yeah, I think you're right." With a sigh of relief, he smiled at his friend. "I'll stay."


	18. Goku's Fault

"Want to talk about it?" Goku asked, looking down at Trunks from his place in the apple tree branches.

He tried to avoid it by saying cheerfully, "Talk about what?" But Goku didn't buy it. _After all, this is the guy who could tell I had no intention of killing him, even after I charged him with a weapon, _Trunks remembered.

With a shake of his lavender hair, he said, "No. I'd rather not. I will once I have a few things figured out, but until then I'd rather just listen to you." Trunks blushed, feeling he had said too much, or at the very least worded it wrong. He stuttered, "I mean, you seem to have a lot on your mind and I'm a good listener. At least, that's what my Mom says and I think she'd be the one to know."

Trunks winced at the memory of just how long his mother could talk and Goku laughed sympathetically, having known Bulma from her teenage years. "Yeah, I'm sure you've had plenty of practice listening." He smiled at his friend and patted the branch next to him lightly. "Come on and pull up a chair. I could use the practice talking."

With a nimble leap through the air assisted by his Ki, Trunks landed lightly next to Goku. He walked along the branch to its base and sat down with one leg swinging below him. The slightly older boy smiled, excitement for their next sparring session building within him at the sight of his friend's powers.

"So, what are you and Gohan learning in those tutoring sessions? Anything fun?" he began.

Trunks raised one eyebrow. _Since when does Goku care about Gohan's schooling?_ "Of course. You know me. All fun, no work."

Goku laughed, not quite sure if Trunks was serious or not. The smile stayed on his face as he said dreamily, "He sure is an amazing kid, isn't he?"

The image of older Gohan appeared in Trunks' mind and he agreed. "Yeah. Gohan's such a great kid that to be honest, I almost feel intimidated to be his teacher."

Goku nodded, picking a few leaves and entertaining himself by twisting them into a braid. Trunks respected his need to think before speaking, content to listen to the waterfall's constant roar and feel Goku's comforting Ki next to him.

Still looking at the leaves, Goku said, "You know, one day I won't be here anymore." He looked into the curious eyes of his friend and bluntly said, "I won't always be able to protect the Earth. One day I will die and I'm worried for the future." He shifted slightly on the branch to better speak to Trunks. "In your timeline, when I die no one is ready to stand up and face the androids. And I fear that is my fault."

"Goku," Trunks sighed, "You can't blame yourself for what the androids did, you weren't even alive. We just weren't ready that time. That's all. You can't blame yourself for dying." He could understand where Goku was coming from, though. He still had trouble not blaming himself for all of the world's problems. Even after so many years of living with it.

Goku's eyes turned back to the shifting rainbows of the waterfall, unfocused. "But Gohan is killed and I am not even there," he whispered, eyes narrowing.

Trunks remained silent. At one point in his life, he had really blamed Goku for that very thing. If only the one hero had survived, then his son would still be alive. But then he realized how wrong it was to lay blame like that.

The mist coated the man's ebony spikes in dew, making them sparkle with life. "It makes me realize that I need to prepare everyone for when I am gone. By being the savior of the Earth all of the time I haven't allowed the others to shine. In some ways, I really think your future _is_ my fault." He turned back to Trunks with an unexpected smile.

"It doesn't matter, Goku," Trunks said, not wanting to touch the sensitive topic of the future. "That's all changed now. It won't happen again."

He held up one finger and said, "Not for sure. Not quite yet," still with a smirk.

Trunks did not understand what Goku meant. What else did they need to do to change it? He had given Goku the antidote and had warned everyone about the androids. Did Goku think of some other snag?

Without any warning, Goku's power level spiked upwards. Trunks was used to living in a nightmare, so a mere second after the dark haired man became golden, the lavender haired man followed suit. _What is going on?_ Trunks thought wildly wondering what had possessed his friend as they both transformed.

The Super Saiyan leapt out of the tree, still smiling and said, "I've learned something important from your future, Trunks."

He sent several energy blasts towards the apple tree which Trunks blocked almost lazily, beginning to smile as the thrill of a fight took over him. "Oh, and what's that?" he said, leaping out of the tree with a well aimed punch.

Goku dodged the attack and the two warriors began to spar in earnest. "I've learned that I can't protect you guys all of the time," he said calmly forming a destructo disk to counter an energy attack of Trunks' making. "I've got to push everyone I can to their limits, just as I push mine."

The two attacks exploded together in mid air, their owners already fighting far above the debri.

Trunks unsheathed his sword and motioned wordlessly with one hand, creating a monster of golden energy, trying to catch Goku between the two weapons.

The Saiyan smiled, putting two fingers to his forehead and disappearing from the targeted space entirely.

When he reappeared, it was next to the apple tree and he had transformed back to his black haired resting state, signaling the end of the sparring match. Somewhat reluctantly, Trunks let his hair fall back down in straight, lilac locks and sheathed his weapon, floating to the ground to join his friend.

Goku looked seriously at Trunks, continuing on the previous topic. "I want this future to work out, Trunks, as much as you do." His mouth curved into a smile. "So from now on, there's no holding back, got it? We've got to get as strong as we can."

Trunks nodded with the fire of a Saiyan burning in his eyes and growled, "That's fine by me."


	19. Nightmare

Trunks wasn't sure which was harder, keeping his eyes open or keeping his knees from collapsing right out from under him. Both were trying to give out on him since it had been four hours straight of fighting with Goku. _And Goku sure meant it when he talked of not holding back._

He crouched down, closing one eye and looking at Goku with the other. With some satisfaction he noted that Goku's arms were shaking as badly as Trunks' knees were and it seemed as though the slightly older man was breathing a little harder than his younger counterpart.

Trunks sighed, managing to stand up once more and saying, "You up for more, Goku?"

Before either of them could answer, however; Trunks felt himself collapse, hair dropping over his face in a purple mess. Goku took a few good breaths and transformed back into his dark haired self once more; little did Trunks know that he could not have held it even one more minute anyway.

Trunks blushed, embarrassed at his weakness, but utterly unable to do anything about it. Goku limped slowly over to his friend, hands on his hips and said, "You know what, Trunks? I think it just might be time for a break. Let's go home."

Trunks gave a cough of amusement and looked up at Goku, unable to move anything more than an inch. "Yeah. You just might be right, Goku."

One hand resting on Trunks' shoulder and two fingers from the other hand pressed to his forehead, Goku used his signature technique and the familiar site of the cottage appeared before the two worn out fighters.

With considerable difficulty, Trunks got up on his feet and they both slowly walked inside.

As the two fighters opened the door, they were each attacked. Chi Chi running up to hug her husband and Gohan jumping around his tutor, exclaiming, "I'm all done! Can we build it now?"

Trunks smiled at the little scholar, saying, "Not quite. I've got to check your essay for errors and take a look at your calcs first."

Chi Chi beamed at Trunks from within Goku's arms as they made their way to the table like a family.

It was only as they sat down and began to eat that Trunks remembered with a pang that he was supposed to be distancing himself from everyone. _I need to get away. Now._

He sighed, putting his fork down and asking to be excused.

Chi Chi looked concerned and Gohan disappointed. Trunks said, "Sorry. I really am tired. I'll grade your homework in the morning, Gohan. Thanks for the meal, Chi Chi. I better get going to bed." _Gosh, I'm even starting to think of Chi Chi like a sister. I've got to be careful, before this gets out of hand._

Goku gave Trunks an oddly perceptive look which he decided to ignore as he got up from the table. "Goodnight, Trunks."

"Night, everyone," he said, stumbling over to the couch. _What am I doing to myself? I need to get away from here before I am too attached to leave. Think about your Mother, Trunks. Think about all of the people who need you back there…_

He tried to feel as strongly for them as he had the night before he had come to the future, but somehow could not get an emotional response out of his exhausted heart before he drifted off to sleep. A fact that plagued his dreams that night.

_The smoke caught in Trunks' throat, bringing tears to his eyes as he struggled not to cough. He needed to be silent. They had to be nearby. Those beasts…_

_There they were. One blonde beauty and her black-haired brother. The two demons of Trunks' world._

_Fire from the burning cities lit up their lifeless eyes as they laughed at their own destructive force. There was no stopping them, Trunks knew this, yet he could not just stay there and watch. Without thinking too hard about it, he determinedly put one foot in front of the other, walking to his death._

"_No, Trunks!" a couple of voices yelled from beside him. _

Or was it one voice? _Trunks wondered. _

_He spun around, lilac hair whipping into his eyes. It was Gohan. Both of them, standing side by side. The adult and child together said, "You're not ready, yet!"_

_Somehow, Trunks could not move, whether he was paralyzed by fear or hope or something stronger, he could not move. "No!" he screamed, watching helplessly as the Gohans walked up to the androids. _

_None of the four people listened to him and with casual ease, his friends were blown to non existence before his eyes._

"_No!" he screamed again, but his voice was not alone. There was a familiar lightening of Trunks' heart as he sensed Goku's Ki from nearby._

_But the hero did not seem to be here yet._

_Unexpectedly, the boy, 17, started laughing. "Oh. No you don't."_

_Trunks did not understand until it was too late. With one smooth movement, the callused murderer pulled out his gun and gave two quick shots over his shoulder. The screams he heard then, ripped his heart in half. "Mother!"_

_Another shot, another scream. "Chi Chi!" Trunks cried. He could feel Goku, but he could not see him. _Where are you?!

_Whatever had held him in place for so long was released for just a moment and Trunks did not waste a second. The pain inside transformed him without effort, his golden hair reflecting the flames of the nearby buildings._

He fought with all of his strength, but something was holding him down again. He had to kill those monsters!

"Trunks! Calm down!"

"No," Trunks yelled. "They won't get away with this!" Without opening his eyes, Trunks tried to throw off the weight holding him down, creating Ki blasts in each hand as he fought. "_I have to get there before it's too late!"_ he screamed.

There was suddenly a golden glow beside Trunks and something blasted him from where he lay, knocking the air out of him as he was thrown right through the wall. The force of the attack made his body fly through the air and hit the ground, creating a freshly dug trench. Wincing, Trunks' body skidded to a halt against a boulder, grass and dirt flying from his trail.

As he lay there, reality spun back on kilter and he finally opened his eyes.

Propped up by the boulder, Trunks was looking straight back at the house. There was a golden glow that he could see coming through the wrecked wall he had just flown through. The glow of another Super Saiyan.

An explosion rocked the trees and when he looked up, Trunks could see that some sort of energy blast or maybe two had collided with amazing power. How had that happened? Had _he done that?_

The golden figure flew out of the open wall and appeared next to Trunks as his friend.

Goku changed back to his normal appearance, saying cheerfully, "Sorry about that. Couldn't figure out any other way to stop you. Those were quite some energy blasts you had going."

Trunks avoided looking up at his friend, horrified by his own lack of control. He could have killed Goku, Chi Chi, and Gohan with that power. _How could I let that happen?_

Without a second thought, without a word of farewell, Trunks leapt from the ground, tears forming in his blue eyes. All he knew was he had to get away before he did any more damage. The wind tore at his jacket from the speed he flew as a Super Saiyan, threatening to tear it off as he sped into the growing light.


	20. Gohan's Death

It was impossible to tell if the tears in his eyes were from the sheer speed of the wind as he flew, or the horrific accident that he had nearly performed. _Why didn't I leave earlier? Why did I wait until something like this happened? I should have never gotten close to them. I should have gone straight back to the future when I gave Goku the medicine._

He had no idea where he was going until he heard a familiar roar of sound drift to his ears. Without a thought, he landed, knowing that if he was going to find any answers, it would be here. Here on the cliff with the apple tree and music of cascading water.

He fell to his knees, breathing hard and he let his hair fall down to the sides of his face, light purple and smooth once more. _I am just as bad as the androids. No worse._ He thought, mercilessly to himself. _My hatred nearly destroyed the ones I love. At least they only kill the ones they hate._

Trunks crouched there on his hands and knees, so wrapped up in his own misery that he did not notice at first when something changed. When he did notice, he jumped to his feet, fighting the lightening in his heart; he didn't deserve to be happy right now.

Goku had appeared right next to him, slowly removing the two fingers from his forehead and saying, "I sensed you had stopped flying and thought you could use some company."

"Why didn't you just stop me from leaving, then?" Trunks was both thrilled and livid to have Goku appear there at his side. _Am I not allowed to have time to myself anymore? Do I have to be watched just in case I do it again?_

"I knew you needed some time," Goku stated matter-of factly. His gaze sharpened, "But I also know that thinking things over only can do so much good. Eventually you need to trust someone and talk about it."

"Is that so?" Trunks snarled.

Goku was not even fazed in the least by his friend's anger, so shrugged, saying, "From everything I've seen."

Trunks was battling himself, trying not to power up as the self-loathing consumed him. "Goku, don't try to act as though I need to talk about my day or something small like that!" He glared at the dark haired man, narrowing his ice blue eyes. "I just nearly killed you! And Chi Chi! And," he voice caught in his throat as he faced the truth, "I nearly killed Gohan. Would have if you had not blasted me through the wall in time."

Goku frowned at his lavender haired friend. Not in anger, but in concern and sympathy. "I understand that, Trunks."

"How can you be so calm about it!" He screamed, "I nearly killed your son!"

Goku maintained his serenity, looking around at the scenery for the first time since he had used Instant Transmission. He took in the waterfall and the apple tree and asked, "Why did you pick this place? It's the same spot as we met last time."

Trunks was thrown off guard by the unrelated question. It took him a moment, but then he answered, "I needed some time to think. And I found myself stopping here before I really thought about it."

The Saiyan nodded calmly and replied, "If you need some time to think, don't you think you need some time to talk too?" He turned to Trunks and raised his eyebrows. "I mean, all your thoughts can't stay in there forever, right? They've got to get out sometime."

Trunks did not respond, lost in thought at Goku's statements.

The older man said, "Look. I've got some things to tell you. You say you're a good listener, so that shouldn't be a problem." He gestured for them to sit there on the cliff near the waterfall's base, taking a seat himself. "And then we'll see. I know you haven't had a chance to test it out much, but I am a good listener as well."

Trunks sat next to his friend, not promising to talk, but wanting to hear what Goku had to say. Even with the closeness of their ages, he still really looked up to the other Saiyan like a big brother.

The mist on their faces was calm and refreshing, making both of the warriors squinch their noses in pleasure. Goku laughed once and said much too lightly. "Even if you had killed Gohan, death is not the end of the world, Trunks."

The purple haired youth looked at the hero, perplexed.

Goku continued, "I've been dead, and trust me. It's not the end of the world. You end up being so busy, you don't have time to miss your family much. And the food is excellent up in the spirit world, even the clouds taste all right."

Trunks smiled. _Leave it to Goku to remember the food. I'm surprised there are still clouds up in heaven if he was up there a year._

The dark eyebrows came down, making Goku serious once again. "Yeah, death is not the end of the world... But you giving up the fight entirely or letting evil rule your heart…" he turned those dark eyes on Trunks. "Those could be the end of the world. Or at least the future."

Trunks looked down at his dangling feet, thinking, _And how would pure-hearted never-kills-anyone-even-his enemies Goku know what it's like? How could he understand what it would be like to nearly murder your loved ones with your own hands?_

Goku let the silence continue for a moment longer, lost in his own memories. Finally deciding, he asked, "You've never heard about Gohan's namesake, have you, Trunks?"

He looked back up at his friend and shook his head. "Gohan was named after someone?"

Goku smiled back at the memories of his first teacher fondly. "Oh yes. Gohan was named after my grandfather." His eyes only darkened slightly. "The others don't realize that I know the whole story now, they always tried to protect me from it. Afraid of what the truth might do to me…"

Trunks gaped at his friend. _Afraid what what truth would do to him? What truth would his friends go so far as to hide from Goku?_

Goku shook his head, little droplets sprinkling the earth around. "Well, Trunks. You're the first person that I'm going to tell about how my Grandpa Gohan really died. You ready to listen?"


	21. Goku's Past

"Did your mother ever tell you that all Saiyans used to have tails, including me?" Goku asked, starting his story.

Trunks nodded. "Yeah, I knew. Though, it was Gohan who told me."

Goku smiled, a picture popping into his head of a happily babbling and rather wild haired baby boy flicking his tail as he met a giant turtle. "Oh, yeah, I almost forgot! He had a tail just like me. Now, did he tell you _why_ Saiyans evolved with tails, or what they do to their owners?"

The lavender haired boy shook his head. No one had told him much at all about the Saiyan race except what he had learned by watching and prying information from his mentor. Which admittedly wasn't much.

The pure-blooded Saiyan laid down on his back, both arms behind his head for a pillow in the exact image of his future son. "I didn't know until just a few years ago when Vegeta came to destroy the Earth. We fought and fought as only two Saiyans could…" His voice drifted off as a reminiscent smile appeared on his face. "We were almost exactly even at that point, with Vegeta being slightly stronger. When I pushed myself, though, he realized, he did not have the strength to finish me off…not as he was, that is."

Trunks had been politely listening, but when Goku stopped, he interjected, "My Father was trying to kill you?" No one had ever bothered to tell him that. "So, he was trying to take over the Earth when you guys met? You met him as a villain?"

Goku's eyes widened, "Well…yeah. He was after the Dragonballs, so that he could wish for immortality. He was also after me, because I was supposed to have destroyed Earth myself. I mean, that's why I was sent to Earth in the first place."

"What?!" Trunks exploded, rocks tumbling off the cliff from the sheer magnitude of his shout. "_You_ were supposed to destroy the Earth?"

Goku stopped and sighed, explaining, "Yeah. The Saiyans were planet pirates for Frieza. They would go out and destroy the planet's inhabitants for salary. Since the demand was so great, the Saiyans started sending out their own babies to carry out their missions. The space pod that they were sent in the day they were born would teach them instructions for what they were supposed to do."

Trunks' head reeled at all of this information. _The mighty Saiyan race, was just a band of controlled universal planet pirates?_

"I was sent to Earth, where my Grandpa Gohan found me. He had always wanted a little boy of his own, so he named me "Goku" and tried to raise me as his son." Goku imagined what he must have put his Grandfather through and gave a chuckle. "I was almost too much for the poor old martial arts master. That is, until I fell down a ravine and hit my head, losing all of my memories of my mission. From that day on, I was under no one's control except my own, and learned martial arts from Grandpa Gohan starting from an extremely young age."

Trunks could just imagine a Goku in diapers doing a Kamehameha wave at a bunch of building blocks and smiled.

"He was my master, friend, and parent. Always there, always laughing, and with an appetite to rival that of a growing Saiyan boy. He was wonderful." Goku laughed, remembering his mentor. "There were only two rules. One, was to follow my heart. And the other was to stay indoors on the night of the full moon."

Trunks understood the first rule, but the second struck him as odd. "Did he ever tell you why?"

Goku sat up and stretched his arms. "Yes. Kinda anyways." He placed both fists in his lap and said, "He told me that on nights of the full moon, a monster comes out and does terrible things. I took his word for it and stayed indoors for much of my young life. Then one night, I stepped out to relieve myself and the next thing I knew, the monster must have knocked me out when he destroyed the yard and killed Grandpa Gohan. I woke up the next morning and was all alone."

Goku's fists clenched tighter and rocks began to shiver through the air as emotions coursed through him. Trunks understood. He would have been the same way if he had been talking about the monsters that had killed Gohan.

"It wasn't until that fight with Vegeta that I found out the truth. He created a moon in the sky and right before my eyes, he transformed into a giant, fighting ape." Gokus voice shook with anger, "And that's when I finally understood. The power of the Saiyan was to transform moonlight, using their tails, and use it to change into city flattening monsters." Goku turned sad eyes to his friend, and every pebble fell back to the ground. Trunks was trying hard not to put the clues together, but the look on Goku's face made the next sentence almost unnecessary. "It was not some random monster that had killed my Grandpa. It was _me._"

Trunks was hit with the news. _Goku had killed his Gohan._ And yet, even knowing that, he kept going, kept being strong for everyone else. Kept being the hero.

He felt ashamed now for reacting the way he had, not realizing Goku knew _exactly_ what emotions Trunks was going through. He whispered, "I'm sorry, Goku. I didn't know."

The dark haired man put a hand on his friend's dew soaked jacket. "Hey. I know you didn't know. There's no way you could have, so you don't have to beat yourself up about it." Goku laughed. "Look, with your father around, _none_ of us should have to beat up ourselves anymore. He'd be more than happy to do it for you."

Trunks smiled, saying, "That's so strange. How did you guys become friends, then? My mom said when you died was the only time she saw him show any tears that were totally sincere."

"Really? Incredible!" Goku scratched his head, "But, you know, I'm not really sure if we _are_ friends. Right now all Vegeta ever talks about is killing me."

Trunks coughed his amusement, saying, "Goku, you've got a lot to learn about my father if you think _that_ means you're not friends. From what I can tell the more he loves you, the more he threatens to kill you and doesn't do it! Just look at my mother."

Goku looked up at the lightening sky, thinking hard. Finally he folded his arms saying, "Well, gosh. If that's true, I must be his best friend."

Trunks smiled. "Exactly."

* * *

I'm not much for author's notes, but this seems like the best way to respond to the great questions you guys are sending me.

First was Marc, wondering if these characters are going to be stronger than in canon. And the second question was from Freehawk which concerned whether or not Gohan was going to continue training after the cell saga. 

I was planning on making Trunks much stronger than in canon, based on the fact that much of Trunks' time in the future was spent talking or waiting on his father in canon. I was imagining how much faster he would grow if someone else was there to teach him. Gohan will be much stronger as well, because in those three years, Chi Chi is not so worried about his studies since he has a regular tutor (Trunks). Piccolo will not be as strong though because not only is he not training with Goku, but with how I am planning this plot-line out he will not feel the need to fuse with Kami. Vegeta will possibly be stronger. I am still playing around with that one. But Goku can only make the people he is around stronger. Those people (Gohan and Trunks in this case) will become much stronger, just as Gohan did in canon in the hyperbolic time chamber, when he finally got Goku to not go easy on him.

After all of this, I am hoping that Gohan will be able to be balanced between studying and training if he has someone there to show him how. So, yes, he will continue to get stronger and stronger instead of stagnating as he did in canon.

That should answer your questions. Thanks. I welcome any that you guys have. It makes me know that you are really enjoying and thinking about the story. I'm sure Trunks would appreciate that. ;) 

Oh, and I must tell you that it really puts a big grin on my face to see all of those hits after a long day at work. You guys, even the ones who just read and don't review, really make my day. Thanks. Hope you enjoy.


	22. Staying for a While

"And one more thing," Goku said, looking at Trunks seriously. "Don't be afraid to get close to people, because our strength as Saiyans comes from our deepest emotions. Didn't you have to get close to someone in order to transform into a Super Saiyan that first time?"

Trunks nodded, silently analyzing his friend's words. _Was it really all right? Should he become attached to those here in this time, even knowing that one day he must go back?_ Trunks wasn't quite sure. He would need to test it out.

"Look. I know that you need time to think, but when you're ready to talk, I'm here. Okay?" Goku said with a smile.

Trunks nodded, "Yeah. Thank you, Goku."

They both looked at the sky which had turned into a bright, pre-dawn blue with a white gold lining the eastern mountains. The stars had disappeared entirely now from their places in the vastness. _It's time to head back._

Wordlessly, they slowly got up from the edge of the cliff and Goku put two fingers to his forehead.

Trunks smiled. _Someday, I have got to learn this technique for myself,_ he thought, placing his hand on Goku's shoulder and not even feeling winded as they appeared before the comforting site of home.

He barely had a moment to breathe, though, before the wind was knocked out of him and he fell backwards onto the grass. Before he had time to think about it and see what in the world had just happened, a familiar round face appeared in front of his vision and exclaimed, "Trunks! You're back! I was afraid you'd never come home."

After the shock wore off, Trunks relaxed and felt the biggest smile he had ever had come onto his face. He reached out a hand to ruffle the wild black mane of hair on his oldest friend and said, "Of course I came back. You're not getting out of lessons that easily, kid."

Gohan laughed and Goku picked his son up off of Trunks, saying, "Come on, Gohan. Let's go have some breakfast."

Trunks shook his head at Goku, amused despite himself, as he got up off of the lawn and brushed himself off.

Gohan was so excited about his essay, that Trunks acquiesced to his request to grade it during breakfast. _Besides, _Trunks thought, _maybe if I get enough brownie points with Chi Chi, she'll let Gohan train with us for a while._

Sure enough, when Chi Chi saw how Gohan couldn't wait to see how well he did on his homework, she softened considerably towards all three of her warriors, which was saying something because she hadn't been in the greatest of moods to wake up and find half of her living room wall missing.

"Well," Trunks said, putting the calculations on top of the graded essay, as the other three looked at him anxiously. "If you're all okay with it, I'd like to continue tutoring Gohan. I don't know too much about where his age group is supposed to be," He looked at Gohan with a smile, "But he seems to be about where I was at his age and I know I was advanced."

Chi Chi squealed, Goku laughed, and Gohan audibly deflated with relief, releasing the breath he had been holding that entire time. The proud father clapped his friend on the back and said, "So, you're going to stay for a while?"

Trunks nodded happily and turned back to his student. "Now, Gohan. I know that you want to test out your calculations, but I'd like to cover the subjects we haven't touched yet, first."

Gohan leapt out of his chair, eyes sparkling with excitement. "Okay, Mister Tru— I mean Trunks," he corrected himself automatically.

"That's the way," Gohan's mentor nodded his approval and turned to both parents. "I think we have a couple of hours of study material to go through and then we'll be wanting some help from both you and Chi Chi on his first project. Is that all right?"

Both of them nodded, Goku saying sheepishly, "Yeah. That should give me enough time to repair the wall." All four of them looked over at the beautiful view of the garden outside, just past the couch and Trunks blushed.

Had it been Goku's fault, Chi Chi would have flown off the handle, but she just couldn't do it to Trunks. Not after everything else. "It's all right, Trunks," she said. "It's not like it's the first time this household of martial artists has broken through a wall. In fact, that really kind of makes you part of the family."

Chi Chi couldn't have possibly known the glow that lightened Trunks' heart at these words. In order to hide his smile, he got up, saying. "Thanks, Chi Chi. And thanks for doing that, Goku. See you two after lunch, then."

It was a blast. Once Trunks stopped giving himself guilt over not going home quite yet, he was the best teacher Gohan had ever known. They learned about photosynthesis and planted some mint in the Dixie cups that now rested in Gohan's window sill. They spent some time reading up on atoms and molecules, Gohan being blown away by how fascinating it all was now that Trunks was teaching it. They took out the Literature book and read all sorts of poetry and ended up having a Philosophy lesson for the fun of it. By the time the two made it down for lunch, Gohan had forgotten all about the afternoon's exciting activity.

"So, what subjects are left for today, Trunks?" Chi Chi asked, curious as the other two what her son's tutor had planned. Ever since Trunks had come into their house, everything seemed different. Gohan couldn't wait to do his homework and Goku seemed to be just as excited as his son was to find out what came next. Chi Chi had been catching him even listening in on lessons, excited to learn for himself what Trunks was teaching. And Chi Chi enjoyed cooking meals, if nothing else, than to hear her son tell the family what he had just learned. She thought back and just could not imagine how they had managed without this young man from the future there in the house.

"Well, the Physics project will be first, but before that I wanted a break to train with Goku and let Gohan finish up some of the homework I just assigned. Gohan already has the plans made for the project, so we'll test it out early this evening. Then tonight, after that, we'll have a bit of Chemistry and Creative Writing to finish off. Oh, and Chi Chi, do you have any marshmallows we could use for tonight? It's part of Chemistry." Trunks winked at Gohan, who knew exactly what the Chemistry experiment was and tried not to laugh.

Chi Chi smiled and said, "It all sounds good. We don't have marshmallows, but I needed to go shopping anyway, so I'll pick some up."

Everyone left the kitchen. Gohan to his room, Chi Chi to town on the flying nimbus and the other two to the yard.

Trunks and Goku faced each other, their hair already starting to fly upwards with the crackling anticipation of a good fight. They both transformed at the exact same moment and Trunks said, "Now remember, don't try to go easy on me. I won't stand for it."

Goku flashed his teeth in a grin and crouched into sparring stance, eyes on his friend as he promised, "Oh, don't worry. I won't."


	23. Senses

Trunks wasn't the type to complain over things not being fair, especially when he had asked for it…_But come on,_ he thought. _Every time I have him, he uses Instant Transmission and I have to start all over again. This really isn't an even fight. There's got to be a way of preventing him from doing it._

Goku disappeared and reappeared next to Trunks, forcing him backwards with a few well-aimed punches. But before Trunks could retaliate, he was gone again, several meters away.

Trunks shot an energy blast at lightning speed towards his friend, only to have him disappear once more without a trace. It was infuriating. He couldn't hit him.

This was getting him nowhere. He needed to stop trying to fight Goku blindly. He needed to step back and think about this. After all, that was one of Trunks' best qualities, thanks to his father's genes.

_He told me during the last sparring session that he travels as a mass of light._

Goku appeared in front of him again and they traded punches for a few seconds. _But even as a mass of light, he would still have Goku's energy signal. That's it!_

The older man flew into the air to try his Solar Flare Attack, but Trunks was too experienced with Goku to fall for that again. And now, he knew how to track him. _If I can just feel the air and sense where his presence is…_

Trunks closed his eyes against the Solar Flare and was blown away entirely by what happened next. It was incredible.

He suddenly became more aware of his surroundings than he could ever remember being in his life. He could sense everything, but more than that. Trunks' eyebrows raised on his face as he analyzed the increased awareness. It was as if he could sense not only every being and every plant in the area, but every molecule within each creature…

Yes, he could feel when each molecule in Goku's body was transformed simultaneously into photons of light energy. _Amazing…_

And he could feel as each blade of grass was transforming light into life energy. Could feel as each of the millions of insects burrowed and flew. Could feel every nuance and sigh of the wind, every speck of dust in the air. It was more than he could put into words.

From a long way away, he heard the echo of _"Trunks!"_ run through his mind, but it was too much effort to respond. He was already overwhelmed with his increased energy senses without adding in noise.

His body started to ache. In mere seconds, the experience had become too much for Trunks to handle.

His head felt as though it was being shocked by thousands of lightning bolts and he gasped with the pain of it. Yet he could not stop feeling every molecule and movement in his surroundings. It was as though a switch had been turned on to his senses and he had no way of turning it back.

His mind literally could not handle this much input. It was too much.

And worse, he could feel Goku moving. Trunks bit through his lower lip. Every single molecule of his friend was pushing against his consciousness. It was more than he could take.

"Stop!" Trunks screamed, helpless against his own ability. _I can't take it anymore!_

The pain spiked up wards even further, if possible. Trunks screamed and felt his body go limp.

_No more._ Eyes rolling backwards into his head, Trunks fell into the blissful darkness of unconsiousness.


	24. Testing It Out

He wasn't sure how much time had passed since he lost consciousness, but when Trunks woke up, he was lying on the grass with Goku crouched over him and practically yanking his shoulders out of his sockets with the effort of reviving him.

He stopped the instant Trunks eyes opened and with a grin, he exclaimed happily, "Trunks!"

Mouth so dry that his tongue and roof of mouth literally stuck together, Trunks mumbled, "mm, llrigh, Goku."

The dark haired man perked up and smiled wide. "You're awake! Sorry," he chuckled. "I know I said I wouldn't take it easy on you, but when you closed your eyes and collapsed, I didn't want to keep fighting you."

Trunks sat up, feeling, strangely enough, just fine. Though perhaps he was a little tired. He wiped some blood from his mouth and asked, "I collapsed?"

His memory caught up with him. _Feeling the grass adapt energy… Feeling every part of every living thing… Feeling each molecule of Goku's body convert into light…The pain…_

Goku looked concernedly at his friend and asked, "Hey. Are you all right?"

"Yeah…" Trunks answered absent-mindedly, still trying to figure out everything that had just happened. He looked at Goku and decided that if anyone would know about his powers, it would be the man sitting before him. "Yeah…Hey, Goku? I have a strange question. Have you ever felt as though you could feel every single bit of life force in the area…You know," he stumbled upon the words to describe what had happened, "As if you could feel millions of bits to every blade of grass?"

Goku put one fist under his chin and Trunks took this time to stand up. "Well, yeah actually. When I do the spirit bomb I feel a little of that, but it's less like I feel every part of everything. More like I am aware of each leaf and river on the planet, than every drop of water…"

Trunks frowned. It seemed similar, but still not near what he was experiencing.

"Oh wait!" Goku slammed on fist into the other as he thought of something. "Yeah, I felt a little of that before. After I first fought Vegeta, I was confined to the _hospital_…"

Here Goku shivered, like a little child who had said a disgusting word. Trunks couldn't help but chuckle.

"…and while I was there, I wasn't allowed to get out of bed, but I still wanted to train." He struggled to describe what happened and he haltingly said, "I guess practiced by feeling every drop of water in the cup by my counter… but then it was as though I could feel tons of little parts to each drop of water. It was strange…"

Trunks nodded. Goku had felt each molecule, just as he had a while ago.

"I then told ever part of my water to lift up and the water came without the glass. Of course that wasn't great when Chi Chi came in. I lost control and the water stopped obeying me and fell right onto my head." Goku said, remembering what a scrubbing he had gotten from Chi Chi and wincing just from the memory.

_That sounds exactly how it was…except his was centralized on one element,_ Trunks thought._ But if I were to command every molecule to do something—_ "Hey, Goku?" He suddenly remembered. _Just before he blacked out, when everything was too much to handle..._ "What happened when I yelled 'stop' just a bit ago?"

"I don't know," Goku shrugged. "I was too busy trying to figure out why my body wouldn't obey me for a second there. And then you had fallen down, so I was more concerned with waking you up."

Trunks nodded, enthralled at this new ability. _So, it's true. Everything that my mind was on probably stopped, including Goku's body. That's why _he_ couldn't move. Amazing! The only problem is the human capacity, I suppose._ "So, how long was I out then?"

Goku shrugged, "A couple minutes probably. I was about to take you up to Korin's tower for a senzu bean when you woke up."

"I see…" Trunks muttered. Suddenly serious, Trunks narrowed his eyes at Goku, making up his mind. "Goku. You said I can trust you, so here it goes. I might pass out again, but I need to test something out. And I might need your help with this. Please. It's important."

The dark eyes narrowed and their owner nodded. "Just tell me what to do."

Trunks sighed, relieved. "I'll need you to wait until I say, 'move' and then charge at me with everything you've got." Goku nodded. That was easy enough. "And then," Trunks locked gazes with his sparring partner, "I need you to promise not to stop me if and when I scream from the pain. I need to push myself to the very edge to be able to grow in this if my assumptions are correct."

His dark haired friend frowned, not liking the idea of Trunks screaming in agony, but if it was what he wanted. He nodded slowly and said, "Ready when you are, friend."


	25. Trunks' Ability

After a few hours of training, Trunks had learned a few things about his abilities, a few key limits that he would have to watch.

Yes, he could move stuff telepathically or make them stop moving, but only when he was completely still and it drained his energy so fast, it didn't seem worth it. Even powered up in Super Saiyan form had only added a few more seconds. Also when he was using this part of his abilities, he had to concentrate on the one item so exclusively that he lost all sense of his surroundings and when he tried to expand the area of consciousness was when he would pass out.

So, if any other enemy was near, then he was good as done for. _Not the optimal situation when my goal is to beat two androids, _Trunks thought.

But that wasn't the ability Trunks was excited about. Not at all…

He smiled and faced Goku, saying, "Awesome. Let's try that again."

Goku dropped into fighting stance and smirked, "Man. You're going to have to teach me how to do this sometime, Trunks."

The lavender hair swayed as he nodded and with no visible cue, they both started. Goku jumped back, putting two of his hands together and yelling, "KA-ME-HA-ME—"

Trunks smiled, racing forward towards the deadly blast head on.

Goku finished, "HAAA!" and pushed both of his hands forward. At least this time, he was prepared for the shock of nothing happening. The first time Trunks had gotten him good, when he expected the wave to affect his partner, but nothing happened. Once again, this time no blue light appeared, no energy to speak of, even though he had done everything right.

_Perfect. The kid's really getting the hang of it,_ Goku thought as the two Saiyans collided and matched punch for punch. _Better get a little away to try another one._

It was this ability that Trunks was so excited about. It took far too much out of him to force something to move or stop, but on the other hand manipulating _energy_ was something that came all too naturally to a Saiyan.

Goku placed two fingers to his forehead and kicked at Trunks' side for distraction as he used Instant Transmission. The Saiyan hybrid had been concentrating too hard and didn't see the kick coming, taking the full force of it on his side. But there was no time to acknowledge the pain, instead he used the momentum to speed up his next punch.

Goku's eyes widened as he realized his technique had failed. _Can Trunks really do that? Stop me from using Instant Transmission?_ He yelped and quickly dodged to the side as Trunks' fist grazed his hair. He had his answer. They fell off balance, stumbling past the other fighter. And each knew that their little spar was over with without having to say a word.

Both Saiyans were breathing heavily and smiling. Trunks backed up and sat down, exhausted. With a winded shout of joy, he exclaimed, "All right! It worked!"

Goku plopped down on the grass, taking the lead from his friend. "You nearly got me there. How did you do that? I couldn't use Instant Transmission at all." He was secretly impressed by the young man's skill.

Trunks laid down, breathing in the smell of the sweet, green grass. "I figured out that if I could manipulate energy the same way that I have been dispersing your Kamehameha Wave, then I could do the same with your own molecules." He put his hands behind his head to prop it up slightly. "You see, when you use Instant Transmission, it takes a lot of energy for each molecule to change into light. All I had to do was keep the energy from reaching them and you couldn't do it. Of course," Trunks winced as a pain shot up his side. "I had to really think about that one and couldn't keep up fighting for a second, but that sort of thing will come with practice."

"Incredible," Goku whispered. He suddenly laughed as a thought popped into his head, "Ha! Can you imagine the look on Vegeta's face when he tries to hit you with everything he's got and nothing happens?"

Trunks frowned, suddenly quite serious. "Goku. I don't plan on fighting my father," he almost growled.

Goku shrugged. "You can believe what you want, but well," Goku raised one eyebrow. "He's Vegeta. Whether you plan on fighting him or not, he's going to fight you. I just want to be there to see how _he_ reacts."

Before Trunks had the chance to respond, he saw Chi Chi flying above them on the flying Nimbus, two brown bags of groceries tucked under her arms and heard Gohan running across the yard to meet them, kite diagrams undoubtedly in hand.

Trunks smiled, watching as Goku stood up and pretended not to be exhausted as his picked up his son and spun him around. With a sigh, he managed to stand up himself and listen as Gohan laid out his plans to the three adults.

They all worked together, seamlessly sewing, gathering, measuring, tying like they were a real family.

Trunks looked around at them, amusedly thinking, _What a strange family though, Gohan acts so old and Goku so young that it feels more like three brothers and a sister than anything._ But Trunks didn't really care if it was strange. It was the best family he'd ever known.

The kite was a complete success and Gohan ran with it for hours, only stopping as night fell.

They discussed the chemical change of burning sugars around a little campfire and even Chi Chi had to laugh as she found out that the "Chemistry Experiment" was in fact more of a smore making contest in the side yard more than anything. It was then that Goku announced that Chemistry was by far his favorite subject, to which they all laughed.

By the campfire, Goku indulged them all to many of his favorite life stories at a request from Trunks, telling of many events from his first time meeting Chi Chi to fighting Frieza.

Trunks felt like a little kid again, back in those few times Gohan had visited and Trunks had pleaded him to talk. If he closed his eyes just so, he could almost imagine it was Gohan there in that orange and blue Gi. His deep, steady voice, soothing the young, lavender haired boy to sleep...


	26. Chi Chi's Change of Heart

It was hard to believe he had been in this world for months already… everything had gone so fast. It all felt so natural, as if he actually belonged here.

Trunks opened his eyes, smiling over at Gohan where he stood in fighting stance, ready to begin sparring against the strength of his mentor again. Goku leaned against a nearby tree, watching his son and friend, a peaceful smile softening his dark features.

_All of us have grown so fast. It's incredible, _Trunks thought as his student charged him full power. The fights were amazing. For a kid, Gohan really was astounding, surprising Goku and Trunks almost daily with his growing powers. _That's the Gohan I know, _the proud teacher thought to himself.

The three boys were not the only ones to have grown and changed over these past months, though. Trunks glanced over at the blanket that rested near the lake and the woman that sat upon it. _Chi Chi's change was probably the most drastic of them all,_ he decided firmly. Anyone who had seen the transformation of the Saiyan's wife would have been impressed too.

As Gohan had begun his tutoring sessions with Trunks, Chi Chi had gained a deep respect for this young warrior from the future, more than she would probably ever admit to. At first she had heard of his past and treated him as something of a son, but as she got to know him and truly rely on him, she began to think of Trunks more and more as a sort of brother. It wasn't so strange, she supposed. I mean, he _was_ only a few years younger than her or Goku, really.

It was wonderful to have him there. He was always around to listen to Chi Chi when she needed to talk about her day and never ate a single bite of food without repaying her in some fashion. And just as Trunks had promised on his first night in their home, he really _could_ cook and had treated them to some amazing culinary masterpieces already.

Those weren't the only best changes in Chi Chi's mind, though. Already Goku had taken Chi Chi on five dates this past month. _Real dates._ So romantic in fact, she had a sneaking suspicion that Trunks had been giving Goku tutoring lessons of his own. And the best part was, she knew that when she came back home, the house would be clean and Gohan would be excitedly studying in his room.

Trunks seemed absolutely perfect to Chi Chi. _So smart, so kind, and…so strong._ Chi Chi blushed just thinking about it. Good thing Bulma wasn't there or she'd be all over the poor guy.

The young mother wanted her son to be just like his mentor. And she realized, in her mind, that included fighting.

Trunks had taught them all that there can and should be balance between learning, fighting, and spending time together. And that was something that Chi Chi had really caught on to.

"Go Gohan! Win! Win! Win!" She yelled, cheering her son on as he ducked under Trunks' fist.

The little boy hardly heard his mother, but Trunks laughed, dodging a vicious triple-kick and calling back, "Hey! Chi Chi! Don't I get a little support?"

Goku laughed good-naturedly from where he stood at the edge of the field. "Sorry, Trunks. The jury's biased on this one."

Trunks fought back, blocking an energy blast from forming in Gohan's hands as he retorted, "Oh yeah, well see if I cook you any eighteen course meals anymore!"

The pure blooded Saiyan gasped. "You wouldn't!" Goku's eyes widened in shock as he thought about it. A second later he realized he didn't want to test out Trunks' threat and without another thought he cheered, "Go Trunks!"

Gohan plopped right over on the battle field, laughing so hard that he couldn't fight anymore for lack of breath.

"Oh, Goku…" Chi Chi scolded him without any real conviction.

Trunks joined his student in mirth from where he stood, saying "Come on, Gohan. We better get started cooking, 'cause I think I owe your dad a meal."

The little boy grinned and jumped back up, "Yeah, Trunks. That was fighting dirty. I think you really scared him."

Gohan pointed one thumb back towards his dad and all four of them laughed as they packed up and headed home.


	27. New Strength

Goku leaned forward, placing his hands on his knees and trying to catch his breath. Sweat dripped down his face, dampening the grass at his feet.

Trunks wasn't in much better shape, having matched Goku blow for blow, but he managed a smile and gasped out, "So…ready to go again?"

The older Saiyan looked up at his friend and smirked. "Sure. Whenever you are." With some difficulty, Goku transformed into a Super Saiyan and looked expectantly at the purple haired, young man.

Trunks nodded, trying to get enough energy together to transform. "Do you mind if we only do this one more time, though? I think I need a break from the other 97 sparring sessions we've done today."

Goku chuckled and agreed, "Fair enough."

Trunks stood up straight, focusing on the fight ahead. He would need all of his strength, both in body and mind for this exercise if he wanted to beat Goku.

"Okay. I'm ready," he said to his blonde friend, transforming into a Super Saiyan as well.

Goku concentrated on his energy formation, feeling the tug of Trunks' ability as it strove to stop his attack. It was a battle of wills, more difficult than Goku had yet experienced. Even forming a Kamehameha wave in 100 times normal gravity had been easier, but then again, that was the point of this training.

Sweat broke out on Trunks' forehead as he struggled against Goku's power, pushing away the energy as fast as Goku was gathering it. It was like a constant tug of war for every little bit of Ki. A struggle against a being of equal and yet, immeasurable powers.

But that was not all. While this battle of energy manipulation was going on, they were still fighting with a skill that far surpassed anything they could have done six months ago. Their speed was incredible as they somersaulted, vaulted, and fought mid-air. Each punch had the power to obliterate an entire mountain, each kick a steel plated skyscraper.

They had taught each other new ways to dodge, new ways to get under the other person's guard. With the level they were at now, Frieza could not have even put a scratch on them in regular form, let alone their Super Saiyan selves. And best yet, they were evenly matched, so all they could do now was keep growing.

Trunks could feel he was losing the war of preventing energy formation even as he was starting to get ahead on the outer battle. And it would do him no good to get in an extra kick or two if Goku managed to create an entire Kamehameha wave.

In a split second, he decided to switch, throwing off Goku completely as he let go of the energy they had been battling over. And a split second was all Trunks needed to form a blast of his own.

With an utter look of surprise, Goku took Trunks' attack, being blasted to the ground high speed and only saving the lawn by using Instant Transmission to stop his progress.

But it was enough. Both recognized had it been a real battle, Trunks could have stopped Goku from performing any energy technique.

Trunks flew down, eyes returning to their usual blue as he patted Goku on the back.

The older Saiyan smiled, hair making the drastic change from blonde to black once more. "Ha! Good fight! You got me fair and square." Goku put both hands behind his head and said, "You know, I don't think those androids even stand a chance anymore."

"Yeah," Trunks agreed. Goku's hope-filled attitude was contagious and he couldn't help, but believe everything would be all right. "And the ones from my future will have a nasty surprise coming to them when I return home." Trunks narrowed his eyes in memory of his mentor, growling, "And then I'll keep every promise I ever made them…"


	28. Premonition

Trunks froze, blue eyes widening at the sudden feeling to overtake him. _What was that?_

His heart gave little flutter of pain and an uneasy quiver of premonition began in his stomach. _It feels bad…Like something's happening somewhere. Something not quite right._

Even after months in this world of peace, Trunks had a keenly honed danger sense. And it seemed to have been set off somehow.

"Are you all right, Trunks?"

The comment snapped him out of his internal musings and he looked over at Goku with a slight frown. "Yeah, I think so…" Trunks replied, not quite sure what to make of this feeling. "I don't know…" he narrowed his eyes at his friend, "I don't feel quite right. Do _you_ sense anything, Goku? Anything strange or wrong?"

Goku closed his eyes, spreading his senses outward as requested. There was nothing there, though. "Not that I can pick up, but I have my limits," Goku said, opening his eyes once again.

Trunks shook his head, trying to throw off the feeling that something was happening. "I don't know, then. Maybe I'm just imagining it."

Goku put one hand to his chin and sat back on his heels in thought. "That doesn't seem like you at all. If you feel something is wrong, then I believe you." He took a few steps forward and continued, "Maybe you're sensing something that I wouldn't be tuned to…"

Trunks cocked his head. "Like what? What sort of thing would I notice that _you_ didn't?" Despite having trained with the legendary Super Saiyan for about the past six months, Trunks still had the idea in his head that the hero could do anything.

"Well," Goku mused, looking up at the sky. "Each of us are most closely tuned to our loved ones." He glanced over at Trunks. "Let's see, so it couldn't be Gohan or Chi Chi because then I'd know for sure. But one of _your_ family members is in the future. And I wouldn't be able to sense _that_ far away_._"

The truth of it hit the boy's heart like a rock. But at the same time, he felt that Goku's logic was right. Trunks gasped, eyes widening. _Mother!_

He couldn't wait any longer. He had stayed here long enough. _If she's in trouble… _"I won't let anything happen to her," Trunks vowed. He turned his back towards Goku and faced West City, the fire back in his eyes that he had all but lost in these peaceful times. Without turning back to his friend, he growled, "I am going now. It's time to get my ship. You can come if you want to."

And when he blasted off from the ground to save the future, Trunks felt only slightly comforted to feel the world's hero right behind him.

_Hold on, Mother,_ Trunks pleaded with fate. _Hold on…_

* * *

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Just to warn you all, only a few chapters left to this story. Thanks again for reading and a special thanks to those who review. I enjoy hearing the things you guys do and don't agree with.

I think it's been especially interesting to see who thinks Trunks should or shouldn't have that ability to disperse energy, my friends and coworkers included.

I also am not sure there will be any time to post tomorrow, literally, so I am posting a few chapters tonight just in case.

So, thanks to all of you for following and I hope to give these last few chapters the suspense they deserve. Enjoy!


	29. The Hope Inside

Trunks cursed himself for using so much energy during his sparring with Goku. _I should have been ready for something to happen. I should have been prepared to go back at any time._

He had at least thought far enough ahead to have his sword and fighting clothes capsulized and in his pocket for safe keeping, but other than that, he was flying to the most important trial of his life unprepared.

Goku kept pace with his friend and Trunks felt the lightening of his heart happen again as he looked over at the dark haired man. _I'm going to miss that feeling…_ Trunks thought to himself sadly.

He hadn't even gotten to say goodbye to Chi Chi or Gohan before he left. Then again, he wasn't sure how he would have been able to… It would have been like saying goodbye to all of his dreams…

Trunks frowned at himself and Goku called over, "It's okay, Trunks. Bulma's a fighter. She'll make it until we get there."

The lilac strands were whipped into his eyes as trunks turned his head to look at his friend. "_We?_" He had never stopped to consider someone being there with him. He was back in "Future Trunks" mode as he called it. _Always fighting, always alone…_

"Well, yeah," Goku called over the wind. "You don't think I'd let you face those monsters alone, right?" he shrugged as if stating the obvious. "I mean, you're part of the family. And besides, I want to see how I do against those androids. You're not the only one who they owe a debt to."

Trunks' heart received a jolt that had nothing to do with premonitions and he smiled even as it hurt. _Part of the family…_ It was hard for Trunks to believe, and yet… He really had become a part of the family. It was true. He really had had a complete family here.

_Still,_ he thought fiercely. _I have family there, in the future, too. And I will not abandon her._

He sped up as much as he could with his returning strength and Goku matched speed. Logic caught up to Trunks and he said, "Goku. How can you come back with me? That would leave no you here. And we can't both leave the Z-fighters to die or history would repeat itself. We just can't let that happen."

Goku nodded, eyebrows creating a thoughtful frown upon his features. "I thought you said that there were two trips left on that machine. Remember? Because the original plan was to go home the day you got here and return in three years to help us with the androids. I figured you could just drop me off when you come back."

Trunks still didn't like risking it. "But what if you die there?"

Goku laughed. "Not likely. Not with the levels we're at. But even if I did not return, history would not repeat itself," Goku said firmly. "This time, I've prepared Gohan to take my place. And I really think he can do it, you know."

Trunks thought about that and realized the little Gohan he knew now was already almost as strong as his mentor had been. All he needed to do now was turn into a Super Saiyan and he'd be stronger. But not only that, but with Chi Chi there, Trunks was sure Gohan would continue to train at least for these next two years. He really probably could beat the androids in this timeline.

Trunks nodded and said, "Thank you, Goku. It means more than you could know to have you there with me."

Goku smiled. "Not a problem. I owe you anyway."

The light purple eyebrows raised in an unasked question.

"I'm not blind to what you've done for my family, Trunks." The ebony eyes twinkled. "You staying with us was the best thing that could have ever happened to Chi Chi, Gohan or me. I know this sounds strange, but I've never gotten to know my wife before. I was almost always training in the woods and she always was at home, forcing Gohan to study… I just didn't understand her."

Trunks nodded for Goku to continue.

He sighed. "But then you came. Chi Chi would talk to you and sometimes I would overhear. I began to understand who she was and what she felt in a way I never could before. It was like falling in love, but less painful than the first time," Goku chuckled, remembering how he had gotten his 'bride' at such a young age. "I came to love who she was and she came to understand my love of fighting through you. And not only that, but seeing her cheer on our son when he spars against you…"

Trunks watched the gentle smile that formed on his friend's face at these words and felt the glow of happiness emanating from Goku warm his own heart.

"And then Gohan himself. I never trusted him as much as you did. It took me a lot to not hold back and trust that he would rise to the challenge. Before you came along, I would push him, but not like an adult. Not like the person he is. Without you, I couldn't leave earth without fearing for it, but now, I've seen my son's strength," he smiled as only a proud father could. "And I've seen his potential to become even more powerful than I am. And so, now I don't feel I have to stand on my own." The dark eyes glittered with hope. "And it's all because of you."

Trunks blushed. All he had meant to do was bring their family together as much as possible…probably just out of guilt for his own. He had no idea… He didn't realize how much he had done… And Goku had not helped him with most of that.

Maybe he hadn't needed to come to the future to find hope and love… Maybe it had been inside him the whole time…

He looked at the sky and for the first time, he believed that he could bring back everything his mother had wanted so badly. Until now, he had half-heartedly wished, but now he knew.

He knew that the same feeling he got around Goku, was the feeling he himself gave others, including his friend. He knew now that he had always had hope inside of him. Without it, he could have never fought for those he loved.

And with that thought in mind, he raced to the future to change the world, his best friend at his side and hope in their hearts.


	30. All Alone

Trunks gaped, at first not even to recognize his own home. _It was so…complete_. The Capsule Corporation Building in this time was a thriving industry of scientists, where in his own time it had been reduced to little more than a battered shelter. _How weird…_

The windows sparkled in the sun cheerily as the two Saiyans landed, boots imprinting lightly on the lush, green lawn. Without actually seeing how his home had once looked, there would have been no way Trunks could have pictured the perfect little spherical buildings and the spectacular side yard greenhouse.

And now that he was faced with this alternate-time home, Trunks wasn't quite sure _what_ to do. If it had been his time, he would have rushed through the house and into the lab where he knew his mother would be situated in front of the main computer. But right now, other people lived here in his home… people who did not know him. He couldn't just walk in…but he had to get the time machine.

The decision was taken out of Trunks' hands as a beautiful blonde stepped out of the front, double-glass doors. With a cherry lipped smile, she squealed, "Goku!"

Trunks raised his eyebrow at his friend, wondering where in the world Goku had met such a woman. She looked more like a status wife than anything with those designer, skimpy clothes and perfectly manicured nails. So how did Goku know someone like _her_?

Goku waved back cheerily and smirked at Trunks, muttering so only his young friend could hear, "Meet your grandmother, Trunks."

The teenager blanched. _THIS is my Grandmother?!_

Swaying her hips, she waddled up to Goku and kissed both cheeks, exclaiming, "Gowsh! It's been forever since we've see you, Goku." She turned her face to Trunks and asked, "Oh! Who is your friend?"

Trunks quickly answered, remembering Goku's memory for Trunks' alternate name. "Hi. My name's Calvin Klein. I've been staying with Goku for a while to train with him."

He blushed as his Grandmother walked up and planted a kiss on each cheek, saying, "Oh, that's wonderful! I'm Bulma's mother, Mrs. Briefs."

Trunks suddenly was snapped out of formalities and remembered his purpose for coming here in the first place at the mention of his mother's name. "About that, is mo—Bulma in the lab—I mean, is she home?"

Goku jumped in before Mrs. Briefs could answer and asked, "Hey! Wait a second. I thought Vegeta was supposed to be staying with you guys. Where is he? I don't sense him anywhere."

Mrs. Briefs shrugged two delicate shoulders and said, "I don't know. He just up and left . I figured he was going to go visit you. The poor guy doesn't seem to have any other friends in the whole world."

Trunks made a valiant effort to not snort. _Did she just call my father 'the poor guy'? _

Goku closed his eyes to concentrate on Vegeta's energy signal. "Hmmm…I still don't sense him. Maybe we missed him that last hundred miles when I used Instant Transmission."

There was another pain that shot through Trunks' heart. His mother was in danger. There wasn't any time for tracking down Vegeta. He had to get the time machine. "Mrs. Briefs. Where's Bulma?"

She tilted her head slightly and said, "Oh, she just left not too long ago. Said to tell Goku hello if he came by to visit."

Trunks frowned. "Where did she leave to? How far?" He needed to get back to his time before it was too late.

"Oh, I don't know dear. She didn't say," Mrs. Briefs said calmly.

Trunks couldn't believe his own Grandmother couldn't keep track of one daughter. I mean, losing track of Vegeta was understandable, but Bulma too? It was insane. Perhaps he should just run inside and to the lab himself, screw the formalities.

"That's strange. I don't sense her anywhere," Goku said, opening his eyes again. "Did you see what way she went?"

Mrs. Briefs touched one finger to her cheek in thought. "Well, kind of. She got in a strange spaceship and before I knew it she had just vanished into thin air. I couldn't tell what way she had gone. But if you want to come inside and have some cookies, we can wait for her to come back."

Trunks' fists shook as the truth shot through his mind. He couldn't believe it… She couldn't have… How could his mother be so stupid?

_And what does that say about you, Trunks,_ a small voice said in his mind. _What does that say about the one who trusted her?_

He could barely contain his sense of betrayal. Had she planned this the whole time? Had she just waited until Trunks' back was turned to take his only method of getting back home? How could he have let this happen?

Falling to his knees, he slammed both fists into the ground. "And that spaceship," Trunks asked, voice shaking from the pressure he exerted to keep it under control. "Was it a golden one? With the word 'Hope' written on the outside?"

But his heart already knew the answer. The ship was gone…

There was no way to save his mother…he was already too late.

He had left her...all alone.

_**To be continued…**_

* * *

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Okay. So, anybody ready for Part Two?

This one follows Bulma, just to warn you.

The title is "Free to Fight" for your searches.

Hope to see you there in the future.  ^_^


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